LAHORE, April 21: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has condemned the police baton-charge upon a group of press photographers at Rawalpindi on Sunday.

In a statement, PFUJ president I.H.Raashed said the fresh police action after one week of baton charge on newsmen in Faisalabad had shocked the journalists community.

He said the press photographers were performing their duty outside the Jamaat-i-Islami office on Murree Road when the police cracked down on the Jamaat workers who were trying to hold a rally. As the press photographers were busy taking photographs of the event, the police baton-charged them, injuring four of them and damaging their cameras.

He said that after the apology offered by President Pervez Musharraf upon the Faisalabad incident in which about two dozen journalists had been injured due to police action, the Punjab police should have refrained from attacking the journalists. But the police had leaned no lesson. He urged the Punjab government to take action against the police officials responsible for the baton-charge and ensure full security to the reporters and press photographers.