Why I fled Pakistan
In May 2006, at the age of 23, I joined the Daily Times, Pakistan’s most liberal English-language newspaper, as a bureau chief. I was perhaps the youngest bureau chief to cover the country’s largest province, Baluchistan, and its longstanding, deadly insurgency. I covered fierce military operations, daily bomb blasts, rocket attacks, enforced disappearances, torture of…
In Pakistan, missing journalist found dead
New York, November 7, 2011–The body of missing Pakistani journalist Javed Naseer Rind was found on Saturday morning in Khuzdar, 186 miles (300 kilometers) south of the city of Quetta, local and international news reports said. The journalist had been shot multiple times in the head and chest, and his body showed multiple signs of…
From Karachi to New York: A tale of fear, loss, and hope
On Monday, a well-known Pakistani journalist came to our office in New York. We had been messaging and texting for a few weeks, so I knew what to expect. Despite the harsh reality check that CPJ’s Sheryl Mendez and I offered during our 90-minute meeting, he is going ahead with the process of applying for…
Baluchistan’s press under siege
Reporters in Pakistan’s conflict-stricken province of Baluchistan have been organizing to display their anger against the continued death threats they have been receiving from government secret services, religious militant groups, and armed nationalist organizations. Their most recent demonstration on October 1 was only one in a string of protests to confront the problem.
A killing field: The targeting of journalists in Pakistan
For the past several weeks, CPJ’s Asia and Journalist Assistance programs have been in regular contact with local and international organizations who are concerned about the rising number of journalists and media workers at risk in Pakistan. CPJ and several other groups are working together on viable, in-country solutions: Journalists in Pakistan are in need…
Pakistan news crew attacked at midday in central Peshawar
New York, August 22, 2011–A midday attack on three Khyber TV personnel in central Peshawar underscores the vulnerability of Pakistan journalists as the country’s security situation grows more precarious, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Threats against Pakistani journalists: A reality check
In a blog entry on August 5, “Quantifying the threat to journalists in Pakistan,” CPJ’s Sheryl Mendez and I tried to measure what seems to be a rising number of threats aimed at journalists in Pakistan. We wrote about how the problem is rapidly growing as Pakistan’s security situation worsens and the civilian government appears…
Journalist gunned down in Pakistan, another still missing
New York, August 15, 2011–Alarm continues to mount for the safety of Pakistani journalists with the assassination of a reporter on Sunday in restive Baluchistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Also, a senior reporter remains missing in Waziristan, after being abducted on August 11.