Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Friday said the federal government is preparing a bill for the protection and welfare of journalists in the country, Radio Pakistan reported.

Aurangzeb was speaking with a delegation from the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists and Rawalpindi-Islamabad Union of Journalists in the federal capital.

"Democracy and media freedom go hand-in-hand and the independent media not only performs the functions of informing public but also empowers all members of the society by enhancing and nurturing democratic values," said the minister.

The information minister added it is a "top priority of the democratic government", adding that a draft of the bill, titled Journalist Welfare and Protection Bill-2017, has been sent to various press clubs and media outlets seeking recommendations for improvement.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent organisation working to promote press freedom worldwide, in its special report launched in December 2016, had stated that no journalist was murdered in Pakistan "in retaliation for their work" in 2016 ─ a first since 2001.

The organisation classifies murder as "the targeted killing of a journalist, whether premeditated or spontaneous, in direct relation to the journalist's work".

However, many Pakistani journalists have resorted to self-censorship or have abandoned the profession altogether to avoid "grave risks", CPJ added.

Echoing the sentiment, a report released by Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) in November 2016, also said, "Media houses and media persons are not only being targeted but threatened, pressurised, intimidated and harassed by the state and non-state elements."

"Threats and violence have forced many journalists to move from these danger zones and to leave the profession or to resort to self-censorship, particularly in conflict areas," it had added.