Geo TV ban irks people at grassroots
LAHORE: The entire civil society, its conscious representatives, print and electronic media journalists, students and masses continued to express their bewilderment and agitated remorse over banning of Geo Television Network by the government.
The 39 days long ban is depriving millions of Pakistanis of their fundamental right to know. As the undeterred struggle for restoration of democracy and basic human rights enters into its second month throughout the country, another equally powerful and significant movement is gaining ground among the public. In this regard, millions of common folks living all across the country are now raising serious questions about the ban on the Geo TV, which had informed people about what is happening around them. It sensitised them about the root causes of the problems being faced by their beloved country in almost every field.
Majority of people in Pakistan in general and in the provincial metropolis in particular has openly expressed their displeasure and a great sense of loss on depriving them of their fundamental right of being informed about their own country and their own affairs.
The common man in the street, womenfolk in the houses and little children in the schools are repeatedly asking one single question, which has too many questions enclosed within, that is why Geo TV has been banned?
The answer also comes from the same common people who would put forward the only justification they could find out for the abrupt ban by the government and that is, “It seems Geo TV was telling too much, which was certainly not affordable to the government and it will never want the people to get smart and educated.”
To Pakistanis, the only and the most heinous crime Geo TV committed was exposing the double standards and white lies and brining the truth in front of the people, the real owners of this country.
No government in the world, specially a military government, could afford to have educated, well-informed and agitated masses and that’s exactly what Geo TV had done in just a very short span of just a little over two years, a fate no one has ever attained yet including all the firebrand political leaders, educationists and intellectuals. The ‘Restoration of Geo TV Movement’ is not engineered by Communication studies experts, nether the owners of the Geo TV pumped up millions of rupees in the streets to win over the ‘loyalties ‘ of every common Pakistani, it is the Pakistanis who took it to their hearts and minds.
It was first time ever in the six decades of this country’s short history that people were being informed right in their bedrooms about the most sensitive and crucial developments happening in the country while their interest being put on the top. These brave men and women had put their lives at stake day in and day out only to provide maximum amount of information to their viewers. It was the love of the people of Pakistan for Geo TV, which was the real wind beneath the wings of every reporter, cameraman, anchor person, technical staff, analysts and other Geo staff, which kept them going on no matter how tough the going was.
Everyday, for the last 39 days, hundreds of men, women and children, uninvited, simple common people, bring bouquets of flowers, stand and listen to the Geo song and express their solidarity with the Geo TV’s staff at the specially set up protest platform at Davis Road in front of the Geo Lahore Offices just out of pure love for this television network, which the people proudly called their own television network since it is all about them for them.
No appeal has been sent to their homes, offices or in the media calling them to come and pay their tributes and express their feeling for Geo TV but still people emerge in huge numbers braving the chilling weather, rain and wind along with their small kids just to say “We are with You Geo”.
Besides the regular around the clock protest platforms at Geo Offices, there is a constant protest camp at the Lahore {Press club where people from all walks of life, specially, journalists from other media organisations and like PUJ and PFUJ, Lawyers community, students, NGO representatives, political parties workers and leaders including Benazir Bhutto, Mian Nawaz Sharif and Mian Shahbaz Sharif, Imran Khan and many others have made their visits only to express their solidarity with the media in general and Geo TV in particular.
All this said and done, the Geo TV is still sticking to its guns by not bowing down to beg for lifting of the ban.
The only message Geo TV’s entire team has to give to the people is ‘Thank You, the live-hearted brave people of my great city, Lahore, and thank you brave people of my beautiful country, Pakistan, for standing by us for believing in us.”
Journalists demand withdrawal of press ordinances
ISLAMABAD: The government would have to withdraw its two controversial “black” media ordinances because journalists believe in doing responsible journalism, said a senior office-bearer of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ).
“The PFUJ has always talked about doing responsible journalism,” said PFUJ Secretary-General Mazhar Abbas during a protest camp of journalists outside Rawalpindi-Islamabad Press Club camp office here on Tuesday.
Hundreds of journalists, students, lawyers and members of civil society participated in the camp that entered its sixth week on Tuesday. Mazhar Abbas said that the protest against curbs on the media is gaining momentum with every passing day. “During our meetings with government officials, we always stressed that it’s totally unfair to do amendments in the press ordinances and we would continue to fight against it,” he told the large gathering.
The PFUJ office-bearer asked politicians not to pass amendments in the National Assembly when they get elected in the next month’s general elections. “If they try to pass these amendments then we would label them as enemies of the media,” he said.
Afzal Butt, president of the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Union of Journalists, said that journalists are fighting for a free press, the supremacy of judiciary and constitution. “And we would continue our struggle,” he said.
“We will not keep quiet until these press ordinances are withdrawn,” he said.Camp Incharge Asim Rana thanked all participants for joining the protest camp. Members of civil society Jamil Abbasi, Ansar Malik, and RIUJ Vice President Shahryar Khan, Umar Riaz Abbasi, Advocate Zulfiqar Malooka, Shafqat Aziz and Nadeem Ehsan also spoke on the occasion and expressed their solidarity with journalists fighting for press freedom.
Rustam Satti and Mujahid Baghi presented poems in favour of journalists’ struggle. Meanwhile, officials of the RIUJ were named to lead the protest camp over next four days.
Qurban Satti and Makhdoom Tahir would be camp in-charges on Wednesday. Bilal Dar and Abid Abbasi will lead the camp on Thursday, while Ashfaq Sajid and Zahid Farooq Malik were named leaders of the camp for Friday. Imran Yaqoob, Abdul Shakoor Goraya and Ali Akhtar are the camp in-charges for Saturday.
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