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RESOURCE CENTER - MEDIA MONITOR |
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Tuesday June 19, 2007
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A daily review of media coverage of media and communications issues. |
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Media Protest
PFUJ condemns murder, kidnapping |
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The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has condemned the murder of a young journalist in Sindh and suspected kidnapping of a senior reporter in Balochistan over the past two days and demanded action against people behind the crimes. Nisar Ahmed Solangi, who worked for a Sindhi daily, was gunned down in Pir-jo-Goth in the interior of Sindh and senior journalist Abdul Latif Gola, staff reporter of an Urdu daily, was kidnapped from Jaffarabad in Balochistan, allegedly by intelligence agencies. In a statement, the PFUJ expressed concern over the deteriorating safety situation for journalists, particularly in Sindh, Balochistan and tribal areas. Meanwhile, members of the Balochistan Union of Journalists held a demonstration in Quetta on Monday and demanded immediate recovery of the missing journalist belonging to Suhbatpur area in Jaffarabad district, our correspondent in Quetta adds. The protesters holding placards assembled outside the press club and chanted slogans against intelligence agencies which, they said, were harassing journalists. The BUJ members said Mr Gola had been missing since Saturday night and his family was of the view that he had been taken away by intelligence agencies.
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http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/nat18.htm |
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Speakers vow to uphold media freedom |
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While opposing Pemra amendment ordinance and other covert and overt threats to media by the government, speakers at a seminar vowed to uphold media freedom by carrying out their professional duties objectively in the interest of the public and country. The speakers also maintained that all military and political governments had a tradition of applying different tactics of arm twisting of media for their ulterior motives to clinch and perpetuate their power. They expressed concern that after penetrating the political and business spheres, the military establishment was now encroaching media through recently introduced coercive measures to blackmail and harass the owners of media organisations and journalists. Senior Editor of Newsline Zahid Hussain, Director News ARYone Mohsin Raza and senior journalist Matiullah Jan discussed different aspects of media independence at a seminar on “Media Freedom in Pakistan: Opportunities and Challenges” organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on Monday. Matiullah Jan, terming the original Pemra ordinance a draconian law, lamented that there was nothing substantive in the recently introduced amended ordinance which was only meant to influence the owners of media institutions to stop them from independently running their institutions and objectively reporting events.
http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/nat14.htm
http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/jun-2007/19/nationalnews2.php
http://www.thepost.com.pk/IsbNewsT.aspx?dtlid=103083&catid=17
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Concern over increasing threats to journalists |
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The senior journalists and office bearers of representative unions from Peshawar and tribal areas have expressed concern over increasing threats to lives of newsmen in Bara region of Khyber agency and urged government to fulfill its responsibilities in this respect.
(Nation-20)
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Changing role of the media by Mohammad Waseem |
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“Talk shows provide ‘exit’ from the streets. Blowing hot and cold on TV screen took the anger away, brought extreme views to some kind of a middle ground and shaped the counters of national discourse. It is the journalist community which was directly and most tragically hit by the new ordinance. The negative impact of such acts and provisions would have been felt in the institutional and professional context, which was the target of the new measure.”
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http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/ed.htm#4 |
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The question of press freedom by Dr Tariq Rahman |
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“We hear loud talk about the freedom of the media but Pemra laws swing into action when the government feels threatened. Channels go off air and restrictions are imposed. This is because the reality the press constructs threatens to write history anew. This is the phenomenon that Zamir Niazi spent his life to record and condemn.”
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http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/op.htm#3 |
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Critique on Media
Media compromised freedom: Lawyers |
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A meeting of the Karachi Bar Association regretted on Monday that the owners of certain electronic channels had compromised press freedom in the wake of the promulgation of the tougher new restrictions under the Pemra Ordinance although the lawyers fraternity had offered to the media free legal aid and full support against curbs on the press. KBA President Iftikhar Javaid Qazi, speaking at the association’s general body meeting on the City Courts premises on Monday, alleged that owners of certain electronic channels bargained with the government vis-a-vis the new Pemra rules and coverage of Chief Justice of Supreme Court Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry’s rallies. They started playing down the rallies evidently after discussing their issues with the government, he added.
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http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/local21.htm |
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Media in Courts
Court summons press registrar |
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Lahore High Court has issued notice to press registrar of Federal Information Ministry to appear before court with complete record regarding a writ petition filed by chief editor of Islamabad based monthly Kosar Ldhi against a daily being published from Lahore with same name. Petitioner has argued that Lahore based daily is without legal declaration, according to press and publication ordinance, declaration can’t be issued for other station without permission of already proprietor of declaration.
(Khabrian-2)
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Media Regulation
TV, 2 FM radios shut down in AJK |
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The PEMRA on Monday closed down a satellite TV channel and two FM radio stations operating illegally in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, a PEMRA press release said. A PEMRA enforcement team impounded equipment and sealed the premises of the unauthorised satellite TV station in Sunghar Village in Dhirkot. The illegal channel was interrupting the regular transmission of PTV in the area. In another operation the PEMRA enforcement team confiscated broadcasting equipment of two unauthorised FM radio stations, the statement added.
(News-9)
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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\06\19\story_19-6-2007_pg7_3 |
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Media Miscellaneous
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Durrani manages his exit delayed
Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani is being replaced by his deputy, Minister of State Tariq Azeem Khan, official sources confirmed here on Monday. A final announcement was likely anytime this week, the sources told Dawn. The sources said that a series of top-level meetings were held in the federal capital on Monday to finalise changes in the cabinet and the PML set-up to improve government-media relations and prepare the party for the elections. The sources said that the decision to replace Mr Durrani with Tariq Azeem, taken on Sunday, was confirmed in meetings PML president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain held with the president and the prime minister.
http://www.dawn.com/2007/06/19/top7.htm
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\06\19\story_19-6-2007_pg1_1
http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/jun-2007/19/index2.php
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PA criticizes police torture of five journalists |
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Punjab Assembly Monday condemned the alleged torture of five journalists by the officials of Makhdhoompur police station district khanewal. Dr Javed Siddiqui said Khanewal police victimized five journalists by booking them in false cases. He added they were tortured and booked in another fake case when they availed bail in the first one. The speaker asked Javed to meet Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat to have the matter resolved.
(News-5)
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Was Durrani responsible for govt-media clash? By Tariq Butt |
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“One of the “charges” against Durrani, in the words of a prominent Pakistan Muslim League (PML) leader, was that he never spoke truth while acting as information minister. “If you assimilate information and truth with propaganda, you may become somewhat credible. But just propaganda can’t be sold all the time,” he believed.”
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http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=61043 |
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FJWU to start broadcast diploma |
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Fatima Jinnah Women University (FJWU) in collaboration with the Internews Network Inc is starting FJWU Summer Broadcast Diploma, especially designed for the students of Communication Science Department and for those who want to join. In this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding between Fatima Jinnah Women University , Rawalpindi , Pakistan and Internews Network Inc, Pakistan, was signed on June 18, 2007 in the premises of FJWU. On behalf of the Fatima Jinnah Women University, the vice Chancellor FJWU, Professor Dr Saeeda Asadullah Khan signed the MoU while Adnan Rehmat, country director, signed the agreement on behalf of the Internews Network. Summer Broadcast Diploma will consist of six weeks training on broadcast journalism. The six weeks diploma consists of a two-week-long theory based training and a four-week-long field based internship. The diploma aims at providing standard training for FJWU students on radio journalism and radio programme production.
(Express-2) (Nawa-i-Waqt-2) (Khabrian-2)
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http://www.thepost.com.pk/NatNewsT.aspx?dtlid=103069&catid=2 |
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Music
Taliban ban TV, CDs in public in parts of South Waziristan |
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The Taliban have banned TV and video CDs in public in the Wazir areas of South Waziristan, warning that strict punishment will be meted out to violators. A pamphlet issued by Mujahideen Waziristan and Aman (Peace) Committee chief Qasim Khan declared that the decision would take effect from Wednesday (June 20). “No tea shop or restaurant in Wana, Azam Warsak, Kaloosha and Angoor Adda will be allowed to show TV shows or play CDs and violators will be fined Rs 20,000 and their establishments will be demolished,” the pamphlet pasted in Wana’s Rustam Bazaar read. The pamphlet did not state the reasons for the ban but a senior Taliban leader was quoted as saying the move was aimed at “keeping children away from watching jihadi CDs”.
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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\06\19\story_19-6-2007_pg7_7 |
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DISCLAIMER: The contents, including news and headlines, in this newsletter are reproduced from their respective publications ad verbatim as a public service to media observers. Internews does not author the contents and these, therefore, do not necessarily reflect organizational policy.
Updated at 11:00 PST (06:00 GMT) |
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