Media in October 2007

With violent protests, bombings and military operations all over the country, journalists remained in the line of crossfire through October 2007. 

Last month saw an alarming spike in abuses against media. Most abuses, reports suggest, were politically motivated.  

The National press reported 25 abuses against media throug the month. Three journalists were killed -  Azhar Abbas, a staffer of the Post,  Mureed Shakh, a reporter for the urdu newspaper Khabrain, and Arif Khan a cameraman for ARY, a news tv network. 

The Post staff reporter Azar Abbas Haidri (27) was shot dead by unidentified killers in Qila Kot, amazingly in a Karachi police station. Police offered "disagreement on his plans of marriage" as a cause for murder. Police also didn’t rule out the possibility that criminals might have killed Haidri. 

Arif Khan, cameraman for  the news channel ARY One World, died in Karachi blasts when he was covering the rally. 

The daily Khabrain correspondent from Mureed Shakh, Obarro Ehsan Ali alias Commando Mazaari, also died in the Karachi blasts.

 A number of media persons were critically injured in Karachi blasts. They include Siddique Chaudhry, crime reporter for Daily Khabrain, Abid Ali of Dawn News, Wasiq Naeem of Express, Haroon Rashid of Associated Press of Pakistan, Rashid Ali Panhwar, reporter for APP, Talat Anjum,cameraman for APNA TV and Syed Ather Hussain, a reporter for Jusrrat.

Producer Raza Mehmood Agha and reporter Khalid Jameel of a private TV channel were wounded in a mortar explosion whiole covering the Swat clashes. 

Journalists were also abducted or arrested in  two incidents. Khuzdar Press Club’s senior vice-president Riaz Mengal was kidnapped by unidentified armed men who took him away at gunpoint from the press club building. Police have registered a case. 

Supporters of pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Fazlullah took hostage a senior reporter Niaz Ahmed Khan of Khyber News in Swat at Imam Dheri, headquarters of the mullah. He remained in the militants’ custody for four hours. 

In national press 12 incidents of Intimidation were reported. In Islamabad, the government registered cases of terrorism against six Islamabad-based journalists, after holding them responsible for the violence of September 29 when police arrested 70 journalists covering protests against the scrutiny of presidentail nominees in front of the Supreme Court. (FIR No 166 on complain from SHO Khursheed Ahmed Khan). 

Those booked under section 7 of the Anti-Terrorist Act (ATA) as well as sections 341 and 149 PPC include Aslam Khan, Babar Shahzad, Sohail, Irfan, Abdur Rehman and Rehan Shaikh.

Sources in the Interior Ministry said it has been decided at a high-level meeting that the journalists would be arrested after the completion of inquiry. 

Earlier in police violence against lawyers and journalists, the secretariat police registered FIR against several journalists but refused to identify them. 

Police officials said the FIR had been sealed and they were unable to disclose the names of the journalists who had been booked. 

In the FIR, the police booked four journalists for beating and thrashing Minister of State for Information Tariq Azeem in front of the Election Commission office. 

Family members of top investigative reporter of The News Shakeel Anjum received threats from the police department for filing reports on the role of suspended IG Morvet Ali Shah in September 29 police violence against journalists.

Aamr Lasani, son of Shakeel, now faces a serious danger at the hands of police. SHO, police station new town Rawalpindi, called Shahkeel and threatened to fix his son in a police case. 

The Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) initially refused to admit an injured journalist hurt in the September 29 violence. However, on the directives of the Supreme Court, the PIMS administration took the patient from the court premises and admitted him to the hospital. 

Senior journalist and President of Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) Shamim-ur-Rehman escaped an attempt on his life when unidentified persons tried to crush him under the wheels of their vehicle outside his residence in Gulistan-e-Jauhar.

The journalist community boycotted  press briefing of Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) as officials delayed the meeting, made excuses not to conduct briefing on time. 

The Pind Dadan Khan Police registered a case against 15 journalists under section 188 and 16 MPO. 

Local media persons backed by the lawyers’ community and people from different walks of life brought out a rally to protest on September 30 against the brutalities of the Islamabad police outside the Chief Election Commissioner’s office on September 29.

 Several jounalists were arrested to thwart the rally. Those who have been booked are Chaudhry Akhtar Arain, Younis Naz, Akhtar Ali Shah, Shabir Awan, Amir Raza, Ramzan Khokar, Abdul Sattar Azad, Mohammad Amjad, Malik Shuja Haider, Chaudhry Ameer Hamid, Irshad Hussain, Azhar Imran, Abdullah, Younis Shahbaz, Khwaja Nadeem Mushtaq, Qazi Mohammad Umar, Masood Bhatti, Shaukat Hayat and Asghar Baloch. 

Three motorway police officials reportedly kidnapped a local journalist Ghazanfer Ali for recording their 'deeds' and subjected him to physical torture. The Sadar police registered a kidnapping case against three motorway cops and one unidentified cop, after three days of the incident at the repeated requests of the journalists. One month after the filing of the case, the police have not yet taken any action against the kidnappers. 

Four incidents of restrictions on media were reported in national press. The Punjab Assembly banned the entry of media men into the assembly premises for the coverage of the presidential election while issuing passes to the selected few. 

On eve of presidential election in Karachi, journalists were not allowed to cover the polling process inside Sindh assembly. A large number of journalists were stopped at assembly gate. 

Journalists from AJK were not given permission for the coverage of the President’s trip to Azad Kashmir. Earlier they were asked to submit photos and identity cards for issuance of security passes but were informed that they would not be allowed to cover the trip.

Journalists were stopped from meeting the ailing Mulana Aziz, the former chief cleric of Lal Masjid, who has been admitted at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PMS) due to ill health. 

Senior journalist from FATA Sailab Mehsud received a threatening and abusive phone call allegedly from some security official. Journalists condemned the act. 

Journalists have blamed the political administration of  Khyber Agency for razing the boundary wall of the old press club and destroying its furniture.   

In two incidents of attack on media property, FATA administration ransacked the press club Bara building and threw furniture, computers, fax machine and other equipments out of the building. 

Pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Fazlullah took hostage a senior reporter Niaz Ahmed Khan, all his belonging including camera was snatched.

The journalists’ community in Bajur criticized FATA administration for dividing the media persons in Khyber agency and warned of agitation against the authorities. They alleged FATA secretary security, Khyber agency political agent and Bara assistant political agent for adopting policies to divide journalists.  

Monthly Statistics of Abuses against Media in Pakistan	
Oct-07	
Area of Incidents	Killing	Abducted/
Arrests	Assault/ Injured	Intimidation	Attack on media property	Restrictions/
Bar /Censor	Total	
Islamabad	0	0	0	6	0	1	7	
Punjab	0	0		2		1	3	
Sindh	3		1	1		1	6	
NWFP		1	1	0	1	0	3	
Balochistan		1		0			1	
Tribal Areas				3	1		4	
North Areas							0	
AJ&K				0		1	1	
(Category wise total	3	2	2	12	2	4	25	

     
October 01 

•	Cases were registered against lawyers, opposition activists and journalists in different police stations for allegedly attempting to kidnap MNA Dr Farooq Sattar, violating section 144, and attacking the motorcade of Punjab chief minister, the minister of state for information and the police. In the first FIR, the police have booked four journalists for beating and thrashing Minister of State for Information Tariq Azeem in front of the Election Commission office.
•	The secretariat police registered a First Information Report (FIR) against several journalists but refused to identify them. Police officials said the FIR had been sealed and they were unable to disclose the names of the journalists who had been booked. 
•	The Supreme Court summoned top police and administration officials of Islamabad over use of force against lawyers and media people by law-enforcement agencies in capital. Notices to the interior secretary, chief commissioner, inspector general of police, deputy commissioner, duty magistrate and the senior superintendent of police were issued after Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry took suo motu notice of the matter. A number of journalists covering the event were also beaten up by riot police, plainclothesmen and anti-terrorist squad personnel. 
•	The suo moto notice taken by the Supreme Court of the thrashing of journalists and lawyers by the police, mainly in plainclothes, led the top police cops of Islamabad to come out with a secret plan to obtain bails for the main accused. The plan got leaked when IGP Islamabad Syed Moravat Ali Shah constituted a probe committee in the name of finding facts. Leaders of journalists Mazhar Abbas and Afzal Butt forthwith rejected the constitution of the probe body and wondered as to how could the main accused form a committee to probe the matter. The IGP, it may be mentioned, had himself resorted to beating journalists and lawyers with his stick in front of television cameras and onlookers. 
•	Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz ordered an inquiry into violence against journalists and lawyers in Islamabad. According to an official handout, the Interior Ministry had constituted a committee headed by Additional Secretary (interior) Imtiaz Qazi to probe into the “incident at Constitution Avenue”. Other committee members are: Joint Secretary Rashad Bashir Mazari and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Islamabad Aamer Ahmad Ali. The committee will present its report in 10 days. 
•	Minister of State for Information Tariq Azeem was not interested in lodging an FIR against any journalists who attacked him while the government after lodging an FIR reiterated that strict action would be taken against those journalists who attacked the minister.
•	Journalists observe Black Day, Countrywide rallies condemn police repression

     October 02 

•	The executive director (ED) of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims)  initially refused to admit an injured journalist, referred there by the Poly Clinic Hospital. However, on the directives of the Supreme Court, the Pims administration took the patient from the court premises and admitted him to the hospital.
•	Senior journalist from FATA Sailab Mehsud received a threatening and abusive phone call allegedly from some security official. Journalists condemned the act.  
•	Three top officials of the federal capital’s administration were suspended by the Interior Ministry on orders of the apex court, which held them responsible for the use of force by law-enforcement agencies against lawyers, journalists and other civil society representatives on September 29.
•	The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) took back its call for boycott of government functions and countrywide protest against the government for police baton-charge and tear-gassing of journalists after the Supreme Court suspended Islamabad Inspector General of Police (IGP) and some other officials.

October 03 

•	Senior member of the journalist fraternity Senior journalist and President of Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) Shamim-ur-Rehman escaped an attempt on his life when unidentified persons tried to crush him under the wheels of their vehicle outside his residence in Gulistan-e-Jauhar in broad daylight. He said he was waiting for a cab in afternoon on a green belt outside his residence in Gulistan-e-Jauhar near Jauhar Chowrangi when a white or grey car tried to hit him but luckily they failed to cause any harm. “There was neither traffic on the road nor they were trying to avoid any other vehicle. I consider it an attempt on my life as I had received threatening calls yesterday prior to and after the journalists’ protest in the city against manhandling of their colleagues in Islamabad on Saturday last” he informed. 
•	Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) strongly refuted all allegations that any of its member broadcasters had broken the rules and regulations laid down in Pemra ordinance.

      October 04

•	The President of the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE), Syed Faseih Iqbal announced the constitution of the Media Complaints Commission (MCC) of the CPNE. Justice (R) Nasir Aslam Zahid has given his consent to head the MCC as its first chairman.

October 05 

•	Khuzdar Press Club’s senior vice-president Riaz Mengal was kidnapped. According to office-bearers of the club, Mr Mengal was on his way home when some unidentified armed men riding two vehicles intercepted him in front of the club building and took him away at gunpoint. Police have registered a case.

     October 06 

•	The Punjab Assembly banned the entry of media men into the assembly premises for the coverage of the presidential election while issuing passes to the selecte few. The chief security officer of the Punjab assembly told that the teams of electronic and print media would not be allowed to enter into the Punjab assembly premises for coverage of the presidential polls, adding that only the BBC and CNN and APP and the PTV have been allowed for the coverage.

      October 07 

•	On eve of presidential election in Karachi, journalists were not allowed to cover the polling process inside Sindh assembly. A large number of journalists were stopped at assembly gate. Journalists protested against restriction by assembly administration.

      October 08 

•	The Pind Dadan Khan police registered a case against 15 journalists, four lawyers and two unknown persons for holding an anti-government protest rally a week ago, officials said . The officials, who wished not to be identified, told that the case was registered under section 188 and 16 MPO. Local media persons backed by the lawyers’ community and people from different walks of life on September 30 brought out a rally to protest against the brutalities of the Islamabad police outside the Chief Election Commissioner’s office on September 29. Those who have been booked are Chaudhry Akhtar Arain, Younis Naz, Akhtar Ali Shah, Shabir Awan, Amir Raza, Ramzan Khokar, Abdul Sattar Azad, Mohammad Amjad, Malik Shuja Haider, Chaudhry Ameer Hamid, Irshad Hussain, Azhar Imran, Abdullah, Younis Shahbaz, Khwaja Nadeem Mushtaq, Qazi Mohammad Umar, Masood Bhatti, Shaukat Hayat and Asghar Baloch. Representatives of different journalist unions and office- bearers of local press clubs have condemned the registration of the case against media persons and lawyers.

      October 09 

•	The Shaukat Aziz government quietly registered cases of terrorism against six Islamabad-based journalists with the Secretariat Police, after holding them responsible for the violence of September 29. FIR against the journalists was registered on the direction of IGP Islamabad Syed Moravat Ali Shah before his suspension and sealed. Although, the name of Tariq Azeem has not been made an excuse in the FIR under anti-terrorism clauses but police sources say the real motive behind this drastic action is to settle scores with the journalists. FIR No 166 has been registered in Secretariat Police Station and SHO Khursheed Ahmed Khan is the complainant in the case. If the charges against these journalists are proved in the anti-terrorism court, they might face either death penalty or life imprisonment. Those booked under section 7 of the Anti-Terrorist Act (ATA) as well as sections 341 and 149 PPC include Aslam Khan, Babar Shahzad, Sohail, Irfan, Abdur Rehman and Rehan Shaikh. Sources in the Interior Ministry said it has been decided at a high-level meeting that the journalists would be arrested after the completion of inquiry. They may obtain pre-arrest bail from the court of law to face trial, they said. These journalists have been accused of stopping the motorcade of Punjab chief minister when he tried to come out of the Election Commission on September 29.
•	On eve of anniversary of earthquake, Journalists were not given permission for the coverage of the President’s trip to Azad Kashmir. Five days ago, journalists were asked to submit photos and identity cards for issuance of security passes. On 8th October morning, journalists were informed that they would not be allowed to cover the trip.

      October 11 

•	The family members of top investigative reporter of The News Shakeel Anjum received threats from the police department for filing reports of the role of suspended IG Morvet Ali Shah in September 29 police violence against journalists and lawyers in Islamabad. Aamr Lasani, 17 the young son of Shakeel, is now facing a serious danger at the hands of police station new town Rawalpindi whose SHO personally called to convey the threatening message to reporter to fix his son in year old case. 
•	A four-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, gave three weeks' time to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for submitting a complete report regarding the alleged objectionable programmes on PTV and private channels on a petition filed in 1996.

       October 17 

•	The Post staff reporter Azar Abbas Haidri (27) was shot dead by unidentified killers in Qila Kot Police Station (Karachi) precincts on the Eid day. According to the Station House Officer Qila Kot Sultan, Azar Abbas Haidri was living with his paternal uncle Zahid Abbas in 4-Tara Building Noor Elahi Road Karcahi. The SHO said on the day of the incident the Azar left the house at around 8pm telling his uncle that he was going to the Lee Market. He said at around 2am some passer-by informed the local police that a Rickshaw driver had suddenly decamped after throwing a dead body from the three-wheeler near Shedi village Road. Police reached the spot after the information and found Azar Abbas dead with bullet injuries. Police report claims there was a disagreement on his plans of marriage. However, police sources say that might not be the actual cause of the murder. Police also do not rule out the possibility that some criminals might have tried to loot him and on his resistance might have fired at him.

       October 19 

•	Blasts in PPP rally held to welcome PPP leader. ARY cameraman among dead, Khabrain crime reporter seriously injured, at least 138 people, including 25 policemen and a local TV cameraman, were killed and over 200 injured in suspected suicide bombings targeting a vehicle carrying former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on her return from eight years in exile, police and hospital sources said. A cameraman of a local news channel ARY One World Muhammed Arif Khan also died in the blasts. Four other media personnel, including Daily Khabrain's crime reporter Siddique Chaudhry were injured. Chaudhry was reported to be stable after suffering serious injuries in the explosions. The cameramen of private television channels also bore the brunt of the explosion. Arif Khan, a senior camera man of ARY Television, was killed on the spot while Abid Ali of Dawn News, the Express reporter Wasiq Naeem and Haroon Rashid of Deputy Controller of ENG service were critically injured. Rashid Ali Panhwar, a reporter associated with Electronic News Gathering (ENG) service of Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) was injured.

      October 20 

•	Body of the daily Khabrain correspondent Ehsan Ali alias Commando Mazaari, died in the Karachi blast, was brought to his ancestral town Mureed Shakh for burial. Deceased was correspondent of the daily Khabrain at Mureed Shakh, Obarro.

      October 23 

•	The journalist community boycotted the press briefing of Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC), chaired by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz here. The journalists were informed to attend the briefing at 4.00 p.m. The media reached P block, Pak Secretariat well before the time. However, at 4.15 p.m they were told that the briefing had been delayed for an hour as Principal Information Officer of Press Information Department would arrive at 5.00 p.m. The journalists stayed there till 4.40 p.m and then requested to start the briefing as Deputy Chairman Dr Akram Sheikh was present in his office. But Dr, Asif Sheikh, the spokesman of the PC made an excuse showed his inability to do so that prompted the media to boycott the briefing. 
•	Journalists were stopped from meeting the ailing Mulana Aziz, the former chief cleric of Lal Masjid, who has been admitted at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PMS) due to ill health.

     October 25

•	Religious leader restarted broadcasting messages from his illegal FM station in the Khyber Agency. Sources in Bara said the location of the newly-established FM radio station is not known as yet.

     October 26 

•	Bara Press Club President Mehboob Shah Afridi has demanded NWFP Governor to take legal action against the political administration of Tehsil Bara, Khyber Agency for razing the boundary wall of the old press club and destroying its furniture. He said the political administration on the orders the Fata Secretariat officials occupied the old press club, which was constructed on government land. He alleged that the political administration knocked down the boundary wall of the press club and occupied it. "They ransacked the press club and threw furniture, computers, fax machine and other equipments out of the building.” Row over the issue of the press club started a few months ago when the governor announced to construct a new press club.

      October 27 

•	The supporters of pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Fazlullah took hostage a senior reporter of a TV channel for four hours in Swat. Niaz Ahmed Khan, reporter for Khyber News, Pakistan’s only Pushto-language TV channel, was taken hostage at Imam Dheri, headquarters of the mullah. He remained in the militants’ custody for four hours. All his belonging including camera was snatched. 
•	Press conference by NWFP home secretary Badshah Gul Wazir and inspector general police NWFP Mohammad Sharif Virk. “Wazir was also ignorant about a local journalist, Niaz Khan, who was said to have been taken hostage by the militants and later picked up by the security forces.”
•	The journalists’ community in Bajur has criticized FATA administration for dividing the media persons in Khyber agency and warned of agitation against the authorities. The meeting criticized the FATA secretary security, Khyber agency political agent and bara assistant political agent for adopting policies to divide journalists.

       October 28 

•	Mir Shafiqur Rehman Mengal, leader of the ruling PML and son of federal state minister Mir Naseer Mengal, has denied that his brother was behind the abduction of a journalist in Khuzdar.

      October 29 

•	In Swat conflict, there were reports that producer Raza Mehmood Agha and reporter Khalid Jameel of a private TV channel were wounded when a mortar-shell went off at Fiza Ghat. They were shifted to Saidu Sharif Hospital where emergency was imposed and troops had surrounded the hospital building.

      October 30
                       
•	Some weeks ago, three motorway police officials reportedly kidnapped a local journalist Ghazanfer Ali for recording their 'deeds' and subjected him to physical torture. The Sadar police registered a kidnapping case against three motorway cops, Shaar Gull,Tahir and one unidentified cop, after three days of the incident at the repeated requests of the journalists. One month after the filing of the case, the police have not yet taken any action against the kidnappers. In their protest, the journalists appealed to DPO, RPO and IG Punjab police to order the arrest of the culprits and give them exemplary punishment.

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