BYC members arrived at the press club only to find it inaccessible. They broke the locks to hold their seminar as planned. The press club’s hall was reopened on the same day soon after the incident.
Both the Balochistan Union of Journalists (BUJ) and the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) condemned the press club closure.
The PFUJ issued a statement through its President Afzal Butt and Secretary General Arshad Ansari calling press clubs “neutral areas” for raising the voices of those facing state repression. Demanding immediate restoration of press club activities, the PFUJ leaders pointed to Article 19 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to free speech and expression for every citizen. They further stated that “the country is facing the worst kind of media gagging and denial of freedom of expression, and Balochistan is specifically being targeted.”
The BUJ termed the closure “an attack on the freedom of press” and a blatant violation of Article 19 of the Constitution.
In response to this attack on press freedom, the BUJ plans to begin their protests with a walkout by its members from the Balochistan Assembly on May 20th, followed by a demonstration held outside the Assembly building. If there is a failure to respond to their demands, the BUJ has called for a nationwide Black Day to be observed on May 21st. Press clubs across Pakistan are expected to launch protests on the call of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists.
