In Pakistan, local news has global, dangerous implications
As CPJ reports today, eight of the 42 journalists killed this year were on the job in Pakistan. It’s accurate to say the Pakistani victims were like most journalists killed worldwide: They were local journalists covering stories in their communities. But with Pakistan’s political and sectarian unrest aggravated by a decade-long war in neighboring Afghanistan,…
Pakistani journalist gunned down at his home in Sindh
New York, December 6, 2010–Authorities in Sindh province must fully investigate Sunday’s shooting death of Pakistani journalist Mehmood Chandio, president of the Mirpurkhas press club and bureau chief for the Sindhi-language television Awaz, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Lugar: Umar Cheema case a ‘bellwether’ for Pakistan
Sen. Richard Lugar, ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, wrote to Pakistani Prime Minster Yousuf Raza Gilani on September 22 to express concern about the brutal attack on Umar Cheema. The journalist was abducted on the weekend of September 4-5 by men in black commando-style uniforms, who beat and humiliated him. It’s…
Remembering Pakistan’s bad old days of November 2007
November 3, 2007, was a dark day in the history of Pakistan’s media. Former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf banned all private news channels, and some entertainment and sports channels, through an “oral order.” He said he made the move to stop “irresponsible journalism.” Many of the staff in the president’s office who dealt with…
Naming names in a Pakistan abduction case
CPJ has always been careful to avoid making accusations when journalists are abducted or killed in Pakistan. Our tactic is to call for full investigations either by the police, the courts or special investigative bodies. In many such cases, the local journalists’ community blames government security agencies, including the powerful Inter Services Intelligence group (ISI),…
Journalists in Pakistan remain under threat
New York, October 25, 2010–Pakistan must take immediate steps to rein in police and government agencies that threaten reporters. Two cases in recent days–those of journalists Hafiz Imran and Umar Cheema–demonstrate how reporting on stories that are critical of the authorities can bring officials’ wrath down on reporters.
For Pakistani journalists, flood coverage poses challenges
As most of the nation lay paralyzed and submerged in flood water, Pakistani journalists traveled in four-wheel drives and rickety boats to bring tidings from some of the hardest hit areas of the country. The Pakistani Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) compiled a list of journalists directly affected by the flood, many of whom had…
Second journalist killed in a week in Pakistan’s northwest
New York, September 20, 2010–Authorities in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa must thoroughly investigate Thursday’s murder of Mujeebur Rehman Siddique, the second killing of a journalist in the province in one week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.