Journalists in Peshawar stage sit-in against curbs on media
PESHAWAR: Rejecting the imposition of emergency and curbs on the media, the journalist community of the city on Wednesday staged a big rally to protest against the suspension of basic human rights.
Before demonstrating on Sher Shah Suri Road, members of the Khyber Union of Journalists (KhUJ) staged hours-long sit-in in front of the Peshawar Press Club. A large number of media persons, associated with newspapers and television channels, participated.
The participants of the camp were handcuffed, their hands fastened with a black ribbon, symbolising how the media men had been barred from performing their duty. The journalists of television channels had fastened their eyes with black cloth. A number of political leaders and members of the lawyers community visited the protest camp to express solidarity with the protesting journalists. The first was Jamaat-e-Islami Provincial Chief Sirajul Haq, who suddenly came out a car and joined the protesting journalists. Siraj left within a minute in another car when a police officer along with his gunmen rushed to arrest him.
An hour later, Awami National Party provincial chief Mian Iftikhar Hussain also arrived to express solidarity with journalists. He was also forced to leave within seconds when the same officer appeared.
Even people who were passing through the protest camp on the main Sher Shah Suri Road expressed solidarity with the journalists in their movement against the government.
A group of young lawyers also visited the camp and remained there for sometime. Apart from heavy contingent of police, unusual number of intelligence officials was also seen monitoring the activity.
“This was the second phase of our protest under the plan chalked out by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ). In this phase, we will hold protest camps till November 17 while protest demonstrations will be held across the country on November 20,” KhUJ General Secretary Nasir Hussain told The News.
The KhUJ office-bearer said the journalists all over the world would observe November 15 as global action day to show solidarity with the Pakistani media.
They returned peacefully to the Press Club after remaining on the road for almost three hours.
Our correspondent adds from Mardan: Local journalists staged a protest camp in front of the Press Club here Wednesday as protest against government ban on private TV channels and pledged to continue their struggle till lifting of the ban. The protest was observed on the call of PFUJ.
Meanwhile, District Nazim Mardan and Provincial President Aman Jirga Himayatullah Mayar and Syed Kamal Shah respectively visited the camp and demanded lifting ban on media.
Source: The News
Date:11/15/2007
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