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| December 4, 2003 | Thursday | Shawwal 8, 1424 |
Minister rejects HRW report
ISLAMABAD, Dec 3: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has strongly rejected claims by a US-based Human Rights Watch alleging harassment of two journalists in Pakistan.
“The report by the US-based Human Rights Watch about harassment of two journalists by the government of Pakistan is a matter of deep regret,” the minister said.
“The claim that President Pervez Musharraf threatened the Herald journalist Amir Mir during his Nov 20 meeting with editors and columnists is absolutely unfounded and baseless. It is nothing but a pack of lies that the ISI threatened the journalist and was involved in burning his car.
“The incident could be the result of some personal enmity or any criminal activity. Nevertheless the government has taken note of the alleged incident and the police have been ordered to carry out a thorough probe in order to bring out the facts,” the minister added.
The minister said it was unfortunate and highly condemnable that the incident was being exploited by “vested interests” to malign a leader whose commitment to the cause of freedom of press was beyond any doubt and proven fact.
“It is known to everyone that the elected government of Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali has followed strictly the policy of President Pervez Musharraf to ensure complete freedom to all segments of the electronic and print media to perform their professional function.”
“There has not been a single case of any action by the government against any publication or journalist over the last four years,” he said.
The false claim of harassment of the two journalists was a clear attempt at mud-slinging without any valid substance, the minister claimed.
The information minister said: “The Government would like to reiterate that it would safeguard and protect the freedom of press as it believes that a free and vibrant media is essential for the consolidation of democracy and implementation of its policies aimed at establishing a progressive, moderate and forward looking society.”—APP
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