THE state’s decision to curb activities at the Quetta Press Club is, in fact, a move towards enforcing censorship.

The district administration on Wednesday ordered the press club to stop holding seminars and conferences without a no-objection certificate. A notification issued by the Quetta deputy commissioner says this questionable step has been taken “due to the current law and order situation”. However, the state has previously also asked the press club not to host certain parties at its premises, and prevent sit-ins in front of the club.

The move has rightly been condemned by media organisations, including the PFUJ, as a violation of constitutional freedoms guaranteeing the right to information. As the PFUJ has noted, poor law and order in Balochistan is not due to freedom of speech, but because of “denial of rights, injustices … and authoritarian behaviour”.

The flow of information from Balochistan is already restricted due to various factors. These include threats from militant groups against independent reporting, as well as pressures from the powers that be.

Stopping political parties and civil society actors from airing their views and opinions at the press club will only add to the suffocating atmosphere that prevails in Balochistan. Moreover, moves to restrict free speech are usually taken by dictatorial regimes, not dispensations that claim to be democratic. In the information age, ordering press clubs or media houses to get state clearance in order to air certain views is an anachronism.

People will use other avenues, such as social media, to get their voices heard, which is why the state is determined to throttle the internet also. While those that promote hatred and violence should not be given a platform, stopping groups from holding events at press clubs arguably does not fall under the “reasonable restrictions” the Constitution identifies.

The state needs to reverse this unwise decision, and let the Quetta Press Club function without fetters.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2024