Media-military relations under stress: Sethi
* Farooqi says situation worsening for journalists
* Sarfraz says things have changed after Abbotobad raid
* Imtiaz Alam says army facing different challenges
LAHORE: Renowned journalist Najam Sethi has said that the situation for journalists was very critical as conflict zones were increasing in Pakistan and media-military relations were also under stress.
He was addressing a seminar on ‘Media and Conflict’, held under the auspices of South Asian Free Media Association and Media Commission Pakistan, on Wednesday. He said the Pakistani journalists were facing dangerous times. Referring to past governments, he stated that they had levers to control things but the present government and even the courts were helpless before the security agencies. The journalists were caught in the crossfire, because on one side there were Taliban and on the other, there were security agencies, he added. Quoting the incidents of disappearances, Sethi said the people were afraid of their own country’s agencies. He said the courts did not dare to interfere in the affairs of the army. According to him, Saleem Shahzad was murdered for speaking the truth and reporting about al Qaeda-related networks in his book, which the agencies did not want published. But the book has been published and it was an eye-opener because Saleem Shahzad has revealed the truth, he said.
Khalis Farooqi, editor of a local newspaper, said that the situation was worsening for journalists in Pakistan. He feared Punjab would be the next conflict zone after Balochistan, FATA and Karachi. “A ‘threat culture’ is developing in society and the truth is being punished,” he added. He asked journalists to unite and added that some elements were intentionally fanning sectarianism.
Daily Times Op-ed Editor Mehmal Sarfraz, while addressing the seminar, said things had changed after the US operation in Abbotabad and the murder of Saleem Shahzad. She said that real power was in the hands of the army in Pakistan because they were not answerable to anyone. The army was being criticised after the Abbotabad incident, she added. She said, “ We can win only if we keep speaking the truth.”
SAFMA Secretary Genaral Imtiaz Alam said that the country was passing through a critical period. He said the Pakistan army was under pressure from different challenges. According to him, the Raymand Davis case put the ISI and CIA in direct conflict. He said that the army could not be blamed for everything.
The journalists fully support the army in the war on terror, he added. He said that he was worried about the direct talks between the US government and the Taliban, as Pakhtoonkhawa would become a target for Talibanisation in case the Taliban were given control of Afghanistan as an outcome of these talks. He said the journalists would never compromise on freedom of expression. He said the ISI should bring the murderer of Saleem Shahzad to book instead of hiding him.
Source: Daily Times
Date:7/14/2011
” 
” 
” 
” 
” 
