KARACHI, Nov 15: All Pakistan Newspapers Society has strongly condemned the attack on the offices of daily Paigham, Sahiwal by armed hooligans who ransacked the offices and manhandled editors and staff of the publication in retaliation to a news item appeared in the newspaper.

Kazi Asad Abid, Secretary-General APNS, said press freedom was essential for successful functioning of civil society in Pakistan, specially at this important juncture in the nation’s history, says a statement issued on Thursday.

He reiterated pledge of the APNS to defend press freedom and to reject all forms of coercion, intimidation, threats and pressures on the print media either by the establishment or political elements or different groups in the country.

It was the duty of the administration to protect the print media from such elements who intended to dictate the press against performance of their professional duty, he added.

The APNS secretary-general regretted that despite lapse of over a week, the government of Punjab failed to take concrete steps in providing protection to the newspapers and apprehend the culprits involved in the crime against press freedom.—PPI