Pakistan Coalition on Media Safety

Month: November 2017

HRCP warns of media curbs in restive southwest

A leading rights group warned Tuesday of shrinking press freedom in Pakistan’s troubled southwest a month after a series of media outlets restricted activities following threats from militants. Journalists in Balochistan said they were approached earlier this year by intelligence agencies who asked them to stop publishing statements by Baloch separatist groups. After they did so […]

Disappearing freedom?

It is not a surprise to learn that Pakistan is ranked poorly on how much freedom is allowed on the internet. For the sixth year straight, Pakistan has received the woeful rank of its citizens being ‘not free’ on the internet freedom index. The assessment is damning for the new Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act […]

Censoring cinema

The press has been able to consolidate its freedom after several struggles. And today it is generally free from government pressure. There are still other forces which do not allow it to be completely free. Yet among all the democracies in the world, the Indian press is considered independent. The electronic media is to a large […]

Issues facing journalists highlighted

ISLAMABAD: It is unfortunate that journalists always highlight issues of marginalised segments of society but when they lose their own lives in the line of duty, no one remembers them. This was stated by senior journalist Nawaz Raza while speaking at an event held on the ‘Remembrance Day of Journalists’. The event was organised by […]

Concerns voiced over crackdown on media in Balochistan

Showing grave concerns over the Balochistan government’s attempts to close down newspapers and harass journalists and their representatives, civil society and rights activists said on Friday it had become difficult for media persons to perform their professional duties in the province The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan organised a protest outside the Karachi Press Club […]

Freedoms constrained

Freedom in Pakistan, especially if considering the internet and its multiplying roles in daily life, is something of an illusion. Governments worldwide fear the ‘net’ and the anarchic freedoms it represents, freedoms of speech and expression that governments find inconvenient and seek to constrain, often with considerable success as the citizens of China would find […]

Ayub’s attack on Progressive Papers

Mazhar Ali Khan recounts events of that fateful day in April 1959 when Pakistan’s press suffered its most grievous blow. WHEN the people of our land attain full freedom and genuine democracy, and Pakistan’s history is written by honest scholars searching for the truth, and not as a panegyric on, or apologia for, the ruler […]