Paris-based watchdog criticises censorship, ad ban
PESHAWAR, March 14: A global media watchdog accused the government on Wednesday of censoring the coverage of protests against suspension of the Chief Justice of Pakistan and withdrawing state advertisements from a leading newspaper.
The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders said the Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) suspended broadcasts by the private Aaj and Geo television channels after they screened footage on Monday of clashes between police and lawyers.
The images from Lahore included footage of lawyers covered in blood and being beaten by riot police with batons.
“We fear that, in this presidential election year, the independence of the media is going to be under attack from the government,” the watchdog said in a statement received here.
“President Musharraf must immediately stop this kind of authoritarian intervention, which jeopardises the freedom of Pakistani journalists to decide what they cover and how they cover it. Under no circumstances should they be used as propaganda tools,” it added.
A journalist working for one of the two stations told Reporters Without Borders that the media regulator had ordered cable and satellite operators to “black out stations that carried images of the police violence”. The stations withdrew the footage from subsequent reports, the group said.
“The media are being placed under enormous pressure,” the journalist said. “The government wants all news reports to be in its favour. The media nowadays are a reflection of this pressure.”
However, the watchdog said Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani had denied any censorship.
“Under no circumstances did the government ban the media from broadcasting these images. This is a decision of the Supreme Judicial Council. The media are very dear to us and no TV station has been censored,” it quoted him as saying.
Federal Law Minister Wasi Zafar insulted journalist Ansar Abbasi during a round-table debate on March 12 about Justice Chaudhry’s suspension, which was broadcast by the Voice of America’s Urdu-language service.
“He accused me of blackmail and threatened me without any reason,” Mr Abbasi told the watchdog. “I intend to take this matter before the courts.”
“Published by the Pakistan Herald Publications Limited, the daily newspaper, Dawn, is, meanwhile, trying to cope without state advertising,” the media rights group said.
The newspaper’s lawyers appealed to the Sindh High Court on March 6 for the lifting of the sanction. The amount of state advertising placed with the popular, independent newspaper had been cut back drastically since December. The lawyers attribute the cut to its coverage of the Balochistan situation.
“To disguise this punitive policy, advertising is placed very occasionally,” the lawyers said in a joint statement. “In reality, even a partial boycott violates the freedom of press guaranteed by article 19 of the Constitution.”
Source: Dawn
Date:3/15/2007
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