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| December 13, 2006 | Wednesday | Ziqa'ad 21, 1427 |
Concern over press regulatory body
LAHORE, Dec 12: A draft bill to set up a Press and Publication Regulatory Authority reportedly prepared by the federal government has been clearly designed to take away from the press little freedom that it has at present.
A press release of the HRCP said it was appalled that the draft bill, which granted the authority sweeping powers to inspect and visit printing presses and offices of publications to check records and accounts and also impose tough penalties, including a fine of up to Rs1 million and a jail term of up to three years for anything construed as a violation of the proposed law, was not floated among the public or even key stakeholders before being finalised.
Judging by reports, a deliberate effort appears to have been made to keep media organisations in the dark, the release says.
The draft bill has appeared at a time when there are already widespread reports of intimidation and harassment of media professionals. At least four journalists have been killed in 2006 alone and HRCP has received over 20 complaints detailing the `picking up’ of newspersons or the use of other means to threaten them in an attempt to create an environment of terror and silence criticism. These cases expose as blatant untruths the claims of the government to safeguarding press freedom and fundamental rights.
In the guise of setting up an authority for the press on the lines of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra), which has in recent months come under fierce attack from media experts owing to its coercive powers to control channels, the new authority is quite obviously intended to act as a further lever and means of pressurising owners and editors of publications.
The claims that the authority will be a separate and autonomous body is utter nonsense - given that under the present draft, five out of its seven members, including the chairperson, will one way or the other be tied to the government.
The release says the authority will work directly under a grade-21 officer to be selected from the Information Group and appointed by the federal government.
The HRCP shares the grave concern of media bodies that the proposed new law is intended to control and regulate the print media and to curb press freedom.
The government must keep in mind that attempts to suppress dissent and present a single opinion regarding national events can only add to the tensions that are rising in all parts of the country. —Staff Reporter
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