=> ISLAMABAD (January 26 2008): As President Pervez M
ISLAMABAD (January 26 2008): As President Pervez Musharraf struggles to keep his evaporating backing in Europe, his bitter opponents, back home, carry on digging ashes to inflame his opposition. No sooner than Musharraf left for his European tour last week, retired generals agreed on a single-point agenda of his resignation.
Similarly, lawyers also submitted their disagreement to recognise the current Judges, because took oath under PCO. President Musharraf, who is being censured by foreign media for his alleged autocratic moves, so-called curbs on media and manoeuvring of judiciary are some issues for which high lighter could be used on his home coming.
But he still claims that media is not in shackles as it was before he took over. However, journalists came out on the roads here on Friday to resume their movement against the law of the land which, they say, deprived them of freedom of expression. These protest rallies were suspended, for unspecified reasons, after Benazir’s assassination.
Scores of journalists assembled in front of Pemra office to observe ‘demand day’ across the country. They were chanting slogans against the regime and carrying banners calling to ‘free the media for fair polls’. They said that in the absence of free media in the country it would be a naïve approach even to imagine being not manoeuvred.
The journalists said that they were struggling for the future of the country. Therefore, their movement would not an end until the annulment of the Pemra Ordinance. A union leader said that the resumption of banned TV channels transmission did not imply that media was free to disseminate information and perform its due role, as the Pemra had distorted the concept of freedom by imposing ban on selected talk shows of current affairs.
Hamid Mir, an anchor person being barred to conduct his talk show, said the Pemra had not intimated to his organisation about the grounds which led it to ban his talk show. “Any charge sheet or intimation notice to substantiate the ban on my program has not been issued to me, as the ulterior motive for this move by the Pemra is President’s grievances against me”, he said.
Source: Business Recorder
Date:1/26/2008
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