Gagging of media slammed

Published November 19, 2007

TOBA TEK SINGH, Nov 18: On the call of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, a demonstration to protest curbs on electronic media was held outside the District Press Club (DPC) on Jhang Road here on Sunday.

Members of the press club, district union of journalists, lawyers and activists of opposition parties and civil society participated in the demonstration.

The demonstrators resorted to slogan-mongering, condemning the gagging of media particularly the shutting of private TV channels.

Later, a protest meeting was also held at the DPC, which was addressed by its president, Mian Manzoor Naz, and general-secretary Tariq Saeed, Kamalia Press Club President Rana Amjad and others. They demanded restoration of both the news channels, lifting curbs on media besides restoring the Constitution and revoking the emergency and the Provisional Constitution Order.

SHEIKHUPURA: A protest meeting to condemn curbs on media and banning TV channels was also held at the DPC here on Sunday.

The participants of the meeting chaired by DPC president Abdul Hammed Bhatti termed the recent clampdown a ‘brutal’ and ‘dictatorial’ act on part of Gen Musharraf’s government.

They also passed a resolution, urging the international press and media organisations to come forward to condemn Gen Musharraf’s actions to choke the local media.

It was also decided that a hunger-strike camp would be established in front of the club till the re-opening of news channels.

DPC Secretary-General Safdar Shaheen condemned the action terming it a backward journey from so-called ‘enlightened moderation’ to ‘obscurantism’.

Earlier, journalists wearing chains chanted slogans against Gen Musharraf.

Opinion

Editorial

A hasty retreat
Updated 28 Nov, 2024

A hasty retreat

Govt should not extend its campaign of violence against PTI and its leaders, thinking it now has the upper hand. Enough is enough.
Lebanon truce
28 Nov, 2024

Lebanon truce

WILL it hold? That is the question many in the Middle East and beyond will be asking after a 60-day ceasefire ...
MDR anomaly removed
28 Nov, 2024

MDR anomaly removed

THE State Bank’s decision to remove its minimum deposit rate requirement for conventional banks on deposits from...
Islamabad march
Updated 27 Nov, 2024

Islamabad march

WITH emotions running high, chaos closes in. As these words were being written, rumours and speculation were all...
Policing the internet
27 Nov, 2024

Policing the internet

IT is chilling to witness how Pakistan — a nation that embraced the freedoms of modern democracy, and the tech ...
Correcting sports priorities
27 Nov, 2024

Correcting sports priorities

IT has been a lingering battle that has cast a shadow over sports in Pakistan: who are the national sports...