PESHAWAR: The government delayed the passage of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Bill, 2013, in the assembly at the eleventh hour on Monday when Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Israrullah Khan Gandapur agreed to the opposition’s suggestion that the draft should be referred to the House’s select committee for examination and recommendations, instead […]
KARACHI: Civic agencies should appoint a senior official as a focal person responsible for providing information to the general public, and provision of information be made a rule rather than an exception, said an activist of an NGO working on civic issues. As a rule, the civic agency officials like most of their colleagues in […]
ISLAMABAD: While experts are unable to find any way to block unwanted material on social networking website, YouTube, the Ministry of Information and Technology is working on ‘Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill’ which it considers can pave the way for a localised version of youtube. The bill might take one or two more months to […]
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Tuesday tabled ‘Right to Information Bill’ in the provincial assembly while the opposition members walked out from the proceedings in protest against ignoring their demand by the government regarding the District Development Advisory Committee (DDAC). Soon after the recitation from the Holy Quran, newly elected members, including Ahmad Khan […]
The government of Punjab has invited comments from the public on its draft ‘Punjab Freedom of Information Act’, which has been approved in principle by the Punjab cabinet. It is a step in the right direction but major changes are required if the objectives of improving transparency, accountability and governance are to be met. Overall […]
One of the greatest checks on excessive government power is the right of all citizens to get information about what their representatives are up to. The general principle which should be followed, but rarely is, when it comes to freedom of information laws is that all information should be available to the public except for […]
A SPEAKER at a workshop was recently quoted as calling the right to information the mother of all rights. Pakistanis have taken their time to realise this basic principle and now when they are making an effort to access information as a right, there are fears they might end up with less than what they […]
KARACHI: Being responsible citizens and taxpayers, it is our right to know where our money is spent. Article 19A of the Constitution of Pakistan grants one the right to access information in all matters of public importance. The information can be used to support complaints regarding the operations of any public department to make a […]
The writer is one of the directors at Bolo Bhi and has previously worked at Newsline It is not about YouTube, just like it was never about Facebook in 2010. The issue was never limited to the reopening of particular platforms which were accessed through the use of proxies by Pakistanis despite the bans in […]
ISLAMABAD: A petition has been filed against banning journalists’ entry into the special terrorism court in Islamabad on Wednesday. The petition was heard by Special Court Judge Attiqur Rehman in his chamber. The judge also summoned deputy attorney general as amicus curiae in the case. The petition was filed by Islamabad High Court Journalists Association.The […]
ISLAMABAD: The Senate committee on information and broadcasting on Wednesday approved the draft of a much-awaited “Freedom of Information Law”. The committee finalised the draft after eight months of deliberations. It ignored reservations of the defence authorities. The draft was prepared by the ministry on the recommendations of a sub-committee headed by Farhatullah Babar, the […]
ISLAMABAD: It was being speculated that YouTube may be unblocked soon after Eidul Fitr, but it may take a while before internet users in the country will once again be able to access the popular video-sharing website, it has emerged. The information technology ministry had prepared a proposal in this regard that would be presented […]
In a YouTube-less Pakistan, where children and young women are punished for their freedom of expression while radical, militant societal elements are given prime time coverage A parent is told at a parent–teacher meeting that her daughter has been careless lately. When asked to describe and draw an eggplant in science class, she left the […]
The Right to Information (RTI) Ordinance is the first major accomplishment of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led coalition government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). The only such law in the country, the RTI paves the way for a more transparent and vibrant democracy where citizens have access to all government documents and can monitor the expenditure of their […]
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