ISLAMABAD, Aug 1: A spokesman of the ministry of information and broadcasting on Friday reiterated that the government firmly believes in freedom of expression and has taken steps for promotion of a free and fair press in Pakistan.

The government together with the representative organisations of the press has worked for more than three years, today the press enjoys unprecedented freedom and there is no change in that commitment, the spokesman said in a statement issued here.

He regretted the contention of All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS) that the ministry was indifferent to the pending issues relating to the print media especially those about to their suggested amendments to Freedom of Information Ordinance and formation of Press Council of Pakistan.

He pointed out that the Ordinance was not a press specific law and that is why it had been formulated by the cabinet division and not the information ministry. Both the APNS and the CPNE were aware of the fact that the ministry had made every effort to incorporate their viewpoints.

The spokesman said the points to be covered under the rules had been referred to the cabinet division which is in the process of framing these rules.

About the delay in the formation of the Press Council, the spokesman said the presidents of both the organizations were taken into confidence and the names for the chairman and the council are expected to be finalized soon.

He termed regrettable a remark that the ministry was hatching a conspiracy to disrupt the unity of APNS or the CPNE.

The government was neither for or against any of the groups, he said, adding that in the past too the ministry or the government had no role in their bifurcation.

The centralized advertisement policy was not a new decision but a reaffirmation of the previous one made as far back as 1963, he said.

The decision had been taken to streamline the release of advertisements for the benefit of the smaller and regional newspapers and also to discourage exploitation by the middlemen.—APP