APROPOS the news item ‘Disruption to Dawn’s distribution continues across country’ (June 20) which was also posted to Facebook by dawn.com.

The online comments’ section of the post vividly depicts the horrible extent of growing intolerance in our society. Most of the commentators accused Dawn of being biased, anti-state and of promoting foreign agendas, while those who supported Dawn and the people’s right of choice to information and a newspaper of their own liking were in a minority.

Dawn is the leading English daily of the country, a status it could not have if it published biased or shoddy material. Dawn encourages critical thinking and challenges the superficial concepts that control social behaviour to protect the status quo.

For those who think Dawn is anti-state, biased or a promoter of foreign agenda should stop buying it. Without its sales, the paper will not survive. Why resort to coercion? Instead of limiting people’s choices by supporting tactics which lead to forced disruption of distribution, we should stand up for the right to have a newspaper of our own choice.

Zulqarnain Shah
Lahore

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As an ardent reader of Dawn for the last four decades I was saddened to learn that obstructions are being created in the paper’s distribution allegedly with the support of some authorities.

Dawn is the country’s leading newspaper and is staffed by highly professional and seasoned men and women. It has, however, paid scant attention to the proverb ‘living in a river and offending crocodiles is seeking trouble’. Remember, who wields power in Pakistan?

The 1973 constitution clearly states that judiciary and armed forces are not to be unnecessarily criticised or ridiculed. Then why wade into those waters? Dawn keeps a track record of publication that offends the sensitivities of the armed force. Conspicuous among the pieces is what was called ‘Dawn leaks’.

Pakistan is not a utopian state where everything will be run by the book. Why expect the same media freedom as prevailing in some Western countries when the rest of our lifestyle and society are different from those countries?

As an admirer of Dawn, I suggest it should keep on the right side of some of the institutions that contribute to the national cause by paying the cost in human blood.

S. GB Shah Bokhari
Peshawar

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2018