Pakistan slips down global press freedom index
Washington: In the latest survey of press freedom around the world, PakistanÂ’s score worsened from 63 to 66 to reflect increased attacks on journalists who attempted to cover the growing political crisis and conflict between the executive and judiciary throughout the year, in addition to overt censorship and other restrictions, particularly those imposed on the broadcast media, associated with the imposition of the emergency in November 2007.
The annual Freedom of the Press Survey covering the year 2007 issued by Freedom House said the media have played a key role in countries wracked by political unrest and upheaval. Coups, states of emergency, and contested elections have taken place in a growing number of settings. In many cases, the media have played a key role in covering political conflict and is a prime target when a crackdown takes place. Overt restrictions have included shutdowns of key or pro-opposition news outlets and other forms of overt censorship. In the past year, this was a major factor in the Caucasus, Central and South Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. Meanwhile, somewhat less egregious instances of pressure and editorial interference occurred in a number of highly-ranked countries in Central Europe and the Caribbean.
Pakistan ranked 144 in the table listing 195 countries and was described as a country where the press was “not free”, compared to India at No. 77, where the press was termed “partly free.” Out of the countries and territories assessed, 72 countries (37 percent) were rated Free, 59 (30 percent) were rated Partly Free, and 64 (33 percent) were rated Not Free.
This represented a modest decline from the 2006 assessment: 74 Free countries, 58 Partly Free countries, and 63 Not Free countries. The findings for 2007 also represent a negative shift from the survey results of six years ago, which was the last recent high point of press freedom.
In terms of population, the survey found that only 18 percent of the world’s inhabitants live in countries that enjoy a Free press, while 40 percent have a Partly Free press and 42 percent have a Not Free press. The relatively negative picture painted by these population figures is due to the impact of two countries – China, with a Not Free rating, and India, with a Partly Free rating, which together account for some two billion of the worldd’s six billion people.
The percentage of those enjoying Free media in 2007 remained steady, while the percentage of people who live in countries with a Partly Free media environment improved slightly from 2006.
The overall level of press freedom worldwide, as measured by the global average score, worsened slightly in 2007, continuing a six-year downward trend.
The averages for the legal, political, and economic categories all worsened as well, with the political category showing a particularly sharp decline.
Source: Daily Times
Date:4/29/2008
” 
” 
” 
” 
” 
