Senate Committee Calls for Amendments to Right of Access to Information Act; Addresses Media Censorship Concerns
On January 3, the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting, led by Chairman Senator Syed Ali Zafar, held a session to deliberate on potential amendments to the Right of Access to Information Act, 2017. After consultations with stakeholders, the committee requested the relevant ministry to draft proposed changes to enhance the Act. The session also addressed a public petition referred by the Senate chairman concerning the right to appeal provisions within the Act. Various pressing issues, including media censorship and the operations of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA), were discussed during the meeting.
During the meeting, Senator Zafar emphasized the importance of transparency and mandated the presence of all media houses in the next committee meeting. This directive was issued to investigate the reasons behind the censorship of political content, especially statements concerning or by Imran Khan, the founder chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The committee session was marked by a detailed debate over the accountability of media censorship, with Senator Zafar questioning the role of the PEMRA in such matters. He argued against arbitrary censorship and called for “transparent, open dialogue” between PEMRA and the media to address censorship concerns.
Secretary of Information and Broadcasting Ambreen Jan, who also serves as the Managing Director of PTV, explained that the censorship issue may have occurred due to technical glitches. The committee directed authorities to ensure that such technical issues do not recur.
Additional discussions addressed the issues of unlicensed channels operating within the country, with PEMRA officials informing the committee that legal actions are ongoing. Concerns were also raised about the vacancies in PEMRA’s complaints cell, which have been unfilled for two years, potentially hindering the resolution of complaints.
PEMRA Chairman Saleem Baig updated the committee on the ongoing recruitment to fill these posts.
PPP Senator Sarmad Ali raised concerns about the prevalence of unlicensed television channels operating in the country, questioning the actions taken by PEMRA to address this issue. PEMRA officials informed the committee that legal action was underway against unlicensed religious channels, and court decisions were pending. Senator Sarmad Ali expressed frustration, noting: “Then we should also be afraid that it would be declared a religious matter and shoved down our throats.”
Photo: Senate of Pakistan
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