KARACHI, May 6: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed concern at the ‘forced closure’ on Saturday of three private television channels in Karachi.

Zohra Yusuf, vice-chairperson of the HRCP’s Sindh chapter, said in a statement on Sunday that some cable operators had told the commission’s representatives that they had been intimidated and forced to stop the transmission of the channels.

The statement said that “channel representatives also seemed to be under pressure”. Some held the government responsible, while others blamed ‘non-state actors’.

“The HRCP would like to remind the government that its threatening attitude towards the media goes against all principles of freedom of expression and freedom of the press,” it said.

Such policies, the statement said, had led to Pakistan being placed among the world’s 10 worst violators of press freedom by the Committee to Protect Journalists.