LAHORE: The Human Right Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) revealed on Monday that many journalists over the past few months have complained of interference in their work, a local media outlet reported.
The HRCP fact-finding report detailing on media freedom in the country is expected to be published soon.
The report suggests that respondents who chose to remain anonymous in their complaints frequently blamed state institutions.
In addition, interviews carried out in Balochistan, Sindh and Balochistan showed that there were disruptions and intermittent closures experienced by distributors in areas associated with the military.
Similarly, cable operators in Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) have acknowledged they had received calls from persons who identified themselves as members of a state institution or an intelligence agency and asked them to shut down a private news channel or transfer it to the end of the channel list.
The respondents said they agreed with the requests as failure to do so would have harmed their business.
Missing persons, Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), rights activists, Baloch separatists, disqualification/arrest of Nawaz Sharif, NAB references, questionable decisions by the judiciary are some of the topics that media houses or reporters allege they were prevented from reporting on.
In certain cases, the owners of publications had also been approached and threatened by intelligence agencies to abide by certain conditions.
At least seven reports and editors in GB acknowledged they received press ‘advice’ and threats.
The HRCP called on the government and authorities to ensure press freedom in the country and take notice of the complaints.
from Pakistan Today
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