IFJ Media Release: Pakistan- Reporter Who Exposed Lynching Brutally Assaulted in Pakistan

IFJ Media Release: Pakistan

September 1, 2010

Reporter Who Exposed Lynching Brutally Assaulted in Pakistan

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is horrified to learn of the brutal attack on Hafiz Mohammad Imran, a reporter for the Duniya TV news channel, by an unidentified mob in the city of Sialkot in Pakistan’s Punjab province.

Imran was intercepted outside his home in the Ghauspura-Hajipura area of Sialkot on the evening of August 29 by a group that arrived on motorcycles, according to the IFJ affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ).

The reporter was violently assaulted and pushed against a wall before a crowd gathered, forcing his assailants to flee the scene. Imran suffered fractures to his arms and injuries to his shoulders.

“The IFJ is shocked by the brutality of the attack on Hafiz Mohammad Imran and demands that the assault be swiftly investigated and the perpetrators of this violence feel the full force of the law,” IFJ General Secretary Aidan White said.

The IFJ is informed that the attack on Imran may have been related to his role in capturing TV footage of a brutal public lynching of two brothers in Sialkot city on August 15.

The coverage of the murders compelled Pakistan’s authorities to respond. An investigation into the lynching by a specially empowered team of the city’s police is believed to have submitted its report on the same day that Imran was attacked.

According to media reports, two local police officials at the sub-inspector level, Gulzar Khan and Abdul Rasheed, have since surrendered before the law after being named by the special investigation for negligence.

The IFJ is informed that Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik had taken a personal interest in this case and assured Imran of all necessary protection when he visited Sialkot on August 22.

PFUJ affiliate the Punjab Union of Journalists (PUJ) has written to Pakistan’s Interior Minister and the Chief Minister of Punjab Province, reminding them that Imran’s coverage of the August 15 lynching was the key to alerting law enforcement authorities, and reassuring the families of the two brothers who were killed that justice would prevail.

“The IFJ joins with its affiliate the PFUJ in condemning this incident in the strongest terms, and reminds those responsible that journalists will not be intimidated by violent acts that crudely attempt to curtail free and independent reporting of the news,” White said.

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 125 countries

Find the IFJ on Twitter: @ifjasiapacific

Shamsul Islam Naz
Secretary General
PAKISTAN FEDERAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
12-Nazimuddin Road, F-6/1
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone Office +92(0)51 2870220-1
Facsimile +92(0)51 2870223
Cellular +92(0)300 8665523
http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com
http://www.pfuj.pk
http://www.facebook.com/shamsul.naz
http://shamsulisalmnaz.blogspot.com/?spref=gb

PFUJ condemns attack on mediaman in Sialkot

ISLAMABAD, Aug 31: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has strongly condemned the physical assault on Dunya News TV Correspondent in Sialkot Mohammad Imran and termed it a calculated move to intimidate the media and to refrain it from fair and factual reporting.

Sharply reacting to this incident, the PFUJ said that it has once again proved that the law enforcement agencies concerned have failed to discharge their constitutional obligation to protect the life of media persons and ensuring a conducive environment for fair reporting.

According to the reports reaching the PFUJ Secretariat, Hafiz Mohammad Imran was roughed up and injured by unidentified persons outside his residence on August 29 and had to be admitted to a local hospital. The attackers escaped when people started gathering at the place. Imran and his family members have been receiving death threats from unknown callers.

The motive of the attack was to teach a lesson to Imran as he had filmed the gory incident of lynching of two brothers in Silkot in which a group of people were shown hanging him publicly after mercilesslykilling them.

The PFUJ pointed out that on its move, Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik had ordered the police to provide security to the media man and other Sialkot-based journalists, who had covered the incident of lynching but no security was provided to them.

Likewise, on August 28, a petition was filed by the Electronic Media Reporters Association (EMRA), seeking protection of Imran and a cameraman, Bilal Khan, who had covered the tragic episode as they were facing death threats. The court issued appropriate orders to the Punjab Police in this regard too.

The PFUJ, condemning this incident in strong terms, held the Punjab government and police responsible for this act and termed it an open threat to journalists fraternity that if they will expose negligence and highhandedness of police and other government functionaries, their life would not be safe.


The PFUJ joined hands with its affiliated Punjab Union of Journalists (PUJ) and said that it was sad state of affairs that media was targeted by gangs with impunity under official patronage after which the gang then escapes.

The PFUJ demand that the government should take immediate notice of the incident and steps be taken for bringing the real culprits to justice and to ensures safety of media persons.

The PFUJ warned that media persons would not tolerate such types of barbaric acts of the outlaws operating under the patronage of the Punjab Police and gave an ultimatum that if culprits and their masters are not arrested within 48 hours, a country-wide protest would be launched against the Punjab Government till the acceptance of its just demand.

Shamsul Islam Naz
Secretary General
PAKISTAN FEDERAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
12-Nazimuddin Road, F-6/1
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone Office +92(0)51 2870220-1
Facsimile +92(0)51 2870223
Cellular +92(0)300 8665523
http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com
http://www.pfuj.pk

Even in Pakistan city that escaped flood, need overwhelms aid flow | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Headline | International News

Even in Pakistan city that escaped flood, need overwhelms aid flow | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Headline | International News

PFUJ seeks assistance for floods affected Pakistani media persons

PFUJ seeks assistance for floods affected Pakistani media persons

You might be aware of the unprecedented and massive devastation caused by the floods in Pakistan. Over 25 million people have been severely affected besides complete destructions of about 1.7 million houses, parsing of more than 2.5 livestock, standing croups on more than 3.8 millions acres while the flood is still taking its toll in Sindh.

Likewise, the floods have also severely affected media persons across the country. So far houses of about 287 journalists have been completely damaged.

A majority of these journalists had become professional workless owing to displacement, or are severely hampered in their work by the lack of support from their respective media organizations because they do not have permanent staff status or binding contracts with their parent organizations.

Not only this, almost all the affected media persons are those who are self employed and had hired / purchased laptops, computers, cameras, electronic cameras, & other gadgets for reporting, shooting events, which too were lost in floods besides, their books and other important gadgets and equipment was also destroyed in the floods.

You would appreciate it as in the prevailing floods, the importance of the access to information has become more imperative and need of the hour. However, the main instrument of providing information, media persons, themselves have become a victim of the floods, consequently their performance has also been affected to an unbelievable extent, thus it is further compounding the miseries of floods affected population.

You would agree that in such a scenario when media men themselves are in hot waters due to floods, no one can expect their professional output as per ground realities.

Ironically, at present no one is supporting the flood affected media persons. It might be because of the magnitude of devastation in the floods.

Any focus on media persons would go a long way in supporting the media persons back to reporting and keeping the people informed more accurately and promptly.

Helping the distressed media persons who have kept the torch of information burning brightly in regions that were until a few years ago deliberately kept in the darkness, particularly in large swathes of territories affected by conflict, could be one way of acknowledging their efforts to ensure an informed citizenry.

A female journalist Asma Anwar of Noshehra died due to floods. Latest reports reaching our Secretariat revealed that houses of more than 287 journalists were completely damaged in Jaffarabad, Naseerabad, Rojhan, Sohbatpur, Uta Mohammad, Gandakha, Rojhan Jamali, Dera Allahyar, Makran, Sakardu, Gilgit, Baltistan, Khaplu, Mehdiabad, Kalam, Swat, Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Mehdiabad, Swabi, Bajaur, Kohat, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Malakand, Chitral, Karak, Tank, Hairpur, Dir, Takhtbai, Muzaffargarh, Mianwali, Liyyah, Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bhakkar, Rahimyar Khan, Rajanpur, Jhang, Sargodha, Lodhran, Sargodha, Ghotki, Sukkur, Kashmore, Shikarpur, Larkana, Dadu, Nawabshah, Thatta, Jampur, Karpur, Sanghar, Sujawal, Kotri, Dadu, Jacobabad and Hyderabad.

You might also be aware that media persons in Pakistan are passing through tough times and are being terrorized by Taliban and fanatics and floods have further aggravated their miseries. All those media-persons who were dislocated, affected, killed or injured and whose houses were completely or partially damaged need compensation. The loss of human life and infrastructure is colossal and miseries of the affected are unbelievable.

The help at this juncture to affected media persons would create an enormous amount of goodwill for your esteemed organisation too.

We have already established a victims fund for the assistance and rehabilitation of media persons. The donations / assistance can be made in an account titled “Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) Account No. 25574 National Bank of Pakistan, Corporate Branch, Super Market, Islamabad, Pakistan”.

We once again appeal to you in the name of the humanity to come forward with liberal and generous assistance to the calamity-hit Pakistani media persons.

Shamsul Islam Naz

Secretary General
PAKISTAN FEDERAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
12-Nazimuddin Road, F-6/1
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone Office +92(0)51 2870220-1
Facsimile +92(0)51 2870223
Cellular +92(0)300 8665523
http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com
http://www.pfuj.pk

PFUJ seeks assistance for floods affected Pakistani media persons

You might be aware of the unprecedented and massive devastation caused by the floods in Pakistan. Over 25 million people have been severely affected besides complete destructions of about 1.7 million houses, parsing of more than 2.5 livestock, standing croups on more than 3.8 millions acres while the flood is still taking its toll in Sindh.

Likewise, the floods have also severely affected media persons across the country. So far houses of about 287 journalists have been completely damaged.

A majority of these journalists had become professional workless owing to displacement, or are severely hampered in their work by the lack of support from their respective media organizations because they do not have permanent staff status or binding contracts with their parent organizations.

Not only this, almost all the affected media persons are those who are self employed and had hired / purchased laptops, computers, cameras, electronic cameras, & other gadgets for reporting, shooting events, which too were lost in floods besides, their books and other important gadgets and equipment was also destroyed in the floods.

You would appreciate it as in the prevailing floods, the importance of the access to information has become more imperative and need of the hour. However, the main instrument of providing information, media persons, themselves have become a victim of the floods, consequently their performance has also been affected to an unbelievable extent, thus it is further compounding the miseries of floods affected population.

You would agree that in such a scenario when media men themselves are in hot waters due to floods, no one can expect their professional output as per ground realities.

Ironically, at present no one is supporting the flood affected media persons. It might be because of the magnitude of devastation in the floods.

Any focus on media persons would go a long way in supporting the media persons back to reporting and keeping the people informed more accurately and promptly.

Helping the distressed media persons who have kept the torch of information burning brightly in regions that were until a few years ago deliberately kept in the darkness, particularly in large swathes of territories affected by conflict, could be one way of acknowledging their efforts to ensure an informed citizenry.

A female journalist Asma Anwar of Noshehra died due to floods. Latest reports reaching our Secretariat revealed that houses of more than 287 journalists were completely damaged in Jaffarabad, Naseerabad, Rojhan, Sohbatpur, Uta Mohammad, Gandakha, Rojhan Jamali, Dera Allahyar, Makran, Sakardu, Gilgit, Baltistan, Khaplu, Mehdiabad, Kalam, Swat, Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Mehdiabad, Swabi, Bajaur, Kohat, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Malakand, Chitral, Karak, Tank, Hairpur, Dir, Takhtbai, Muzaffargarh, Mianwali, Liyyah, Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bhakkar, Rahimyar Khan, Rajanpur, Jhang, Sargodha, Lodhran, Sargodha, Ghotki, Sukkur, Kashmore, Shikarpur, Larkana, Dadu, Nawabshah, Thatta, Jampur, Karpur, Sanghar, Sujawal, Kotri, Dadu, Jacobabad and Hyderabad.

You might also be aware that media persons in Pakistan are passing through tough times and are being terrorized by Taliban and fanatics and floods have further aggravated their miseries. All those media-persons who were dislocated, affected, killed or injured and whose houses were completely or partially damaged need compensation. The loss of human life and infrastructure is colossal and miseries of the affected are unbelievable.

The help at this juncture to affected media persons would create an enormous amount of goodwill for your esteemed organisation too.

We have already established a victims fund for the assistance and rehabilitation of media persons. The donations / assistance can be made in an account titled “Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) Account No. 25574 National Bank of Pakistan, Corporate Branch, Super Market, Islamabad, Pakistan”.

We once again appeal to you in the name of the humanity to come forward with liberal and generous assistance to the calamity-hit Pakistani media persons.

Shamsul Islam Naz

Secretary General
PAKISTAN FEDERAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
12-Nazimuddin Road, F-6/1
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone Office +92(0)51 2870220-1
Facsimile +92(0)51 2870223
Cellular +92(0)300 8665523
http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com
http://www.pfuj.pk

What a catastrophic downfall!

What a catastrophic downfall!

Readers & fans of DAWN were shocked and stunned to read a news item in Dawn published on Saturday on the front page in which a knave type of apology was tendered. Never such had happened in the whole history of DAWN which was renowned the world over for its high quality reporting and high calibre of its editors.

Sindh High Court story: apology Saturday, 28 Aug, 2010

KARACHI, Aug 27: A news item was printed on the front page of daily Dawn dated 23 June, 2010 under the caption Rs.1.8 million for Sindh C.J’s treatment in US, which was authored by reporter Bhagwandas. In the said news item it was reported that Government had relaxed the ban on overseas treatment at public expense treating it as an exceptional case and parts of the medical history of the Hon’ble Chief Justice of Sindh High Court were published. It was further insinuated that perhaps he was not entitled to the treatment abroad. However, it has now been verified that as the treatment for the Hon’ble Chief Justice was not available in Pakistan, he had no option but to have the same abroad. In the past also Hon’ble Judges of superior Courts of this country have gone abroad for such treatment where it was not available in Pakistan, which is permissible to them under the Rules. Consequently, Dawn renders an unconditional and unqualified apology to the Hon’ble Chief Justice and Judges of Sindh High Court for having published and printed the above news item without verifying the correct position. Dawn undertakes to be more careful in future. “

What a stupour ! DAWN itself is admitting a very careless and irresponsible attitude which has been unlike its glorious traditions and world class reporting.

The news item relates to not less important a personality than an Honourable Chief Justice of Sindh High Court. The long and short of the story is that the Honourable Chief Justice was in need of treatment which was not available in Pakistan, just in a customary and routine way, which was his privilege.

It is simply not understandable what sterling point was noticed about the event by the newspaper to make a mountain out of a mole hill and create a sensational story which ultimately brought disgrace to DAWN the like of which had never happened in the history of DAWN.

But intelligent quarters are not prepared to dismiss it merely as a casusal mistake. They hold that it was a sequel to the recent policy of DAWN to desist from objective and professional approach and adopt a domineering & pro commercial agenda of “vested interests”.

Those who can read in between the lines know that there were certain cases pending in the Sindh High Court involving very personal interests of the Dawn’s owners for which they appeared to have acted over smartly to release a story which might establish their hegemony, which however fired back resulting in reducing the highly dignified newspaper to gutter press level.

The shift in the traditional policy of the DAWN is said to be a calculated move by DAWN Executives in consonance with which an Editor like Mr. Nasir Abbas was inducted in the chain of great Editors like – Altaf Hussain and Ahmad Ali Khan.

Mr. Abbas Nasir is said to have very faithfully fulfilled the mandate given to him and in that process destroyed the high professional standard and norms for which DAWN had been known. Now that the agenda entrusted to him has almost been completed, he is reportedly on the verge of departure. But he appeared to be determined to lick the agenda till the last moment.

The question is whether Mr. Abbas Nasir has built his image as a professional Editor of DAWN or spoilt it altogether by following the non professional agenda and trampling the professional norms.

It would be an interesting propitiation to probe whether the sudden convulsion of tendering “apology” after 78 days of publishing of the said News item, was an honest change of heart, or what took the DAWN 78 days to come to the realization of truth, which was always evident.

On 23-06-2010 an obituary was written “here lies the body of the DAWN which fought valiantly for professional prestige throughout, but fell ultimately to Mr. Abbas Nasir”.

Shamsul Islam Naz

+923008665523

PFUJ CONCERNED OVER CONFERMENT OF AWARD TO HAMEED HAROON & FASIH IQBAL

PFUJ CONCERNED OVER CONFERMENT OF AWARD TO HAMEED HAROON & FASIH IQBAL

ISLAMABAD, Aug. 29 :- The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), which is a representative body of print and electronic media persons of Pakistan, has lodged a strong protest with the government against its decision of awarding Hilal-i-Pakistan award to Mr Hameed Haroon of Dawn and Mr Fasih Iqbal of Balochistan Times and demanded withdrawal of award confronting decisions.

In a memorandum sent to the President of Pakistan, Mr Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raza Gilani, the

PFUJ reminded that Mr. Hameed Haroon and Mr Fasih Iqbal are known perpetual violators of legitimate rights of workers and have been a stumbling block in enforcement of labour laws, have formed cartel of newspaper owners against workers, and are offenders viz a viz enforcement of relevant laws, including the Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act.

While they have been trampling legitimate rights of workers and usurping their due benefits, they are extending inhuman and callous treatment to workers, evading government taxes and levies, and securing undue benefits from the government, the PFUJ asserted.

The PFUJ regretted that we feel that the government has betrayed media persons by awarding this prestigious award to these two persons and it is a regrettable ignorance of vital facts on the part of the government in bestowing such a prestigious award to perpetual violators of law and constitution.

"We are also of the opinion that with this decision, the government has disgraced even the sanctity of the award by granting it to non deserving persons, like Hameed Haroon and Fasih Iqbal", the PFUJ added.

The PFUJ pointed out that those who could not do justice to their workers and institutions, and who could not fulfill Huqooqul Ibad, and were known tax evaders and law breakers, could not be held to have rendered meritorious services to humanity and their field.

In our considered opinion, it is the duty of the state to maintain sanctity of awards, which should have been awarded very judiciously and honestly to really deserving persons, the PFUJ asserted.

PFUJ urged the President of Pakistan Mr Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raza Gilani to reconsider the decision of awarding Hilal-i-Pakistan to Mr. Hameed Haroon and Mr Fasih Iqbal and withdraw the same.

Shamsul Islam Naz

Secretary General
PAKISTAN FEDERAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS
12-Nazimuddin Road, F-6/1
Islamabad, Pakistan
Phone Office +92(0)51 2870220-1
Facsimile +92(0)51 2870223
Cellular +92(0)300 8665523
http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com
http://www.pfuj.pk