Reporters Without Borders’ letter
Musharraf urged to lift ban on Geo TV
LONDON: Reporters Without Borders has written to President Pervez Musharraf asking him to quickly rescind his ban on the Geo TV group's various television stations and two independent radio stations, Power99 FM and Mast FM 103. Following is the text:
Mr Pervez Musharraf
President
Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Dear Mr President,
The authorities in Dubai have just given the privately-owned TV station Geo News permission to resume broadcasting from the Emirate but its programmes are still banned in Pakistan.
Your government is also preventing broadcasting by two privately-owned radio stations, whose equipment was seized when the state of emergency was imposed.
We hail the Dubai government's decision to restore Geo News's rights. Your government must now quickly follow this example and allow Pakistani cable operators to resume distribution of all of Geo TV's stations.
Similarly, the sanctions that were unfairly imposed on the Pakistani news radio stations, Power99 FM and Mast FM 103, must be lifted immediately.
Amina Rustamani of the Dubai Media Centre has announced that the Geo TV's Geo News is again authorised to broadcast from the Emirate.
"Geo News will resume broadcasting at midnight from the Dubai Media Centre following productive discussion between the two parties," Rustamani said.
In Pakistan, the only people with access to Geo TV's stations are those with satellite dishes, the importation of which is restricted. As well as blocking Geo News, your government has also banned the broadcasts of the group's sports, entertainment and youth channels.
"They are trying to strangle us financially by all possible means," Geo TV president told us in a letter. "We are losing half a million dollars a day, a figure the government is well aware of and which must have been factored into its calculations," he wrote. "We are ready to dialogue with honour, but we will not submit to any humiliating accord and to conditions that undermine our credibility."
On 5 November, Geo TV petitioned the Sindh High Court to lift the ban, but the government's representative is sidestepping any substantive debate and on 27 November, the government again claimed that it did not know why the station was blocked.
The Association of Independent Radio (AIR) has condemned the plight of Power99 FM and Mast FM 103 resulting from the seizure of their equipment on 3 November.
"It was the editorial line of these two radio stations, above all, the attention they paid to current affairs, that prompted their closure," AIR chairman Najib Ahmed said.
Employees at the two stations told Reporters Without Borders that the government has done nothing to enable them to resume broadcasting. Although, they were very popular, both because of their own news programmes and their retransmission of the Urdu-language news programmes of the BBC and Deutsche Welle, they are now on the verge of bankruptcy.
We are shocked by the methodical way your government has persecuted Geo TV and the independent radio stations. It seems that the sanctions aimed at bankrupting these independent companies are linked to their refusal to bow to certain dictates, in particular, the code of conduct established after the declaration of the state of emergency.
Mr President, the arbitrary manner in which these popular and respected news media are being treated is having disastrous consequences for your country's international image and for the hundreds of Pakistani journalists who risk losing their jobs. As you have announced that the state of emergency is to be lifted soon, we urge you, as a goodwill gesture, to restore all of Geo TV's stations as well as Power99 FM and Mast FM 103.
We trust in your commitment to press freedom.
Sincerely,
Robert Menard
Secretary-General
SAFMA All-Parties Conference
Politicians divided on issues of restoration of judges, polls
ISLAMABAD: Representatives and leaders of major political parties on Saturday unanimously supported restoration of the freedom of the media but were clearly divided on two key issues ñ restoration of the judiciary and the forthcoming general elections.
"Media is an important ingredient of democracy that provides facts to the people," said Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam top leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman. The Maulana was the star speaker invited to the South Asia Free Media Association (Safma) one-day All-Parties Conference.
"The only thing I want to stress upon is that there should be a code of conduct for the media because I feel the media thinks if there is war, then it's news, if peace then it's no news," Fazlur Rehman said.
The JUI-F has decided to participate in the next month's general elections along with four other major political parties ñ Pakistan Muslim League-Q, Pakistan People's Party, MQM and Awami National Party.
"Pervez Musharraf has accepted the majority of our demands like lifting of emergency, PCO, taking oath as a civilian president and revival of the 1973 Constitution," Fazl told a large audience of lawyers, journalists and members of civil society. "If majority of your demands are accepted, then will the people accept the boycott (of elections)?" he questioned. The Maulana expected that people would cast their vote in the elections, but had little hopes of "quality" elections.
"Judicious, independent, transparent and impartial are a few words that are only associated with the general elections in Pakistan and by the time the next general elections come, a few other relevant adjectives will be introduced," Fazlur Rehman said.
The JUI-F leader was booed by a large audience when he dropped a bombshell and said that the pre-November 3 judiciary, headed by Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, was installed through the PCO just like the present one. "There is a difference between the judiciary and the judges," Fazlur Rehman said. "We are for independent judiciary but we don't support the judges who took oath under the PCO and unfortunately the pre-Nov 3 judges took oath under the PCO and we won't support those judges," he added.
To this, some of the audience even chanted slogans of "shame, shame" and secretary general Safma Imtiaz Alam had to calm down the audience. "He (Fazlur Rehman) is our guest and you have every right to disagree with him, but we can debate this topic for hours some other time," Imtiaz said.
PPP's Secretary Information Sherry Rehman said her party workers felt that they would be like "orphans" if Benazir Bhutto boycotted the general elections. "That's the general feeling among our party workers and they expressed it during Benazir's tour to various constituencies," Sherry said.
She claimed that when Benazir returned home on October 18, there were three million supporters in Karachi to receive their leader after eight years in exile. "Now we can't make them political orphans," she said. Sherry believed that those who came to power since 1985 had now become part of the establishment.
Sherry deplored that despite the launching of dozens of private channels in Pakistan, the young generation in media was not that much vibrant as those who had been in journalism for decades.
"We need to educate these young media persons and in the forthcoming elections the media should prominently highlight rigging," she said. "There is a need that educated people should come into politics."
Prof Khurshid Ahmed, a senator of Jamaat-e-Islami, said his party was fully behind the independence of the media. "Freedom of press is essential for any independent democratic country and now we even see revolution in journalism in Pakistan like the introduction of investigative journalism," Prof Khurshid said.
He felt that the government was afraid of debates and dialogues in both print and electronic media and "thinks that media is exposing it". "But the way media has stood against the government's decisions, I must admit that the whole nation is with it," he said.
Prof Khurshid said without the general elections, it's not possible to bring about a change in the country but for that to happen, the pre-Nov 3 judiciary should be restored, the press should be independent and the impartiality of the caretaker government were a few must "things to do".
Journalist Najam Sethi raised many relevant questions in the light of the present political scenario in the country like: "Are we on a revolution path or not? ... and, How do you get rid of a dictator?"
He said for the first time in the history of Pakistan, a "new factor" had entered into the equation. "Numerous bars and benches of courts are protesting and that is a revolutionary legacy which is going to haunt politicians and dictators," he said. He also pointed out that there were certain factors without which no political movement could succeed in Pakistan. "Bazaar" (business) community, Najam felt, is not ready to come out on the streets in favour of either political parties or civil society.
Secondly, he opined that no movement could succeed unless the urban areas, "led by Karachi can participate and thus far Karachi has not participated."
ANP leader Afrasyab Khan said the press had been tied in chains since 1954 and there were a number of black holes that were created by the government from time to time. "From East Pakistan to bombing in Balochistan, there were a number of occasions when factual reporting was stopped by the government," Afrasyab said. "It was all done so that ordinary people don't get the exact information," he added. He appreciated the institutions like Safma and stressed the need for more interaction with journalists from other countries like India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
Politician Rasool Bakhsh Palijo strongly criticised the government and termed the forthcoming general elections "fraudulent". "Until the pre-Nov 3 judiciary is restored, don't expect anything like free and fair elections," he said.
Ahmed Rasheed appreciated the lawyers' emergence against the government decision that he termed for the first time happening in any Muslim country. "The media should help bring political parties together," Rasheed said to which Sherry Rehman strongly disagreed.
Human rights activist Asma Jehangir said political parties had not "matured" and that's the reason they were not united in deciding whether or not to boycott the elections. "I know it's difficult to do politics in Pakistan, but whenever tough times have come, it's the civil societies that take the lead role and political parties follow them at snail's pace," Asma said.
No case registered against journalists
ISLAMABAD: No case was registered against any journalist or civil society organisation for staging protest demonstration against the government, a spokesman of Islamabad police clarified here Saturday. He said the criminal case (FIR No354) under section 188 PPC was registered against the anti-state elements who were distributing pamphlets causing hatred against the government.
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