Pakistan province enacts harsh defamation law, Supreme Court presses legal action against 34 media outlets
New York, June 11, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed alarm on Tuesday that Pakistan’s east Punjab province hastily enacted a defamation law that is likely to greatly restrict press freedom, and the country’s Supreme Court issued notices to 34 media outlets in connection with their programming. On Saturday, June 8, acting Punjab…
CPJ urges Pakistan lawmakers to reconsider bills that could undermine press freedom
New York, August 4, 2023—Pakistan lawmakers should reject or revise four draft bills likely to undermine press freedom and consult with journalists and other stakeholders in a transparent review process before putting the bills to a vote, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On July 20, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb introduced in the lower…
Pakistan broadcast regulator proposes sweeping control of internet news programs
Munizae Jahangir knew she’d be prevented from putting Mohsin Dawar on her nightly “Spotlight” talk show on Aaj TV, an Urdu-language Pakistani station. Dawar, an elected member of the national assembly, is a leading figure of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), which aims to boost the rights of the Pashtun people clustered in Pakistan’s western…
Evolution of Pakistan’s proposed cybercrime law
A pointer to our colleagues at Bolo Bhi, Pakistan’s independent Internet freedom and electronic privacy watchdog (it’s involved in gender issues too). The watchdog has been tracking the evolution of Pakistan’s attempts at cybercrime legislation since 2007.