World Press Freedom Day: 14,000 journalists rendered jobless in Pakistan
Pak Chronicle Report
Islamabad/Karachi
Around 14,000 journalists across Pakistan have been rendered jobless and others are also facing non-payment of salaries, deduction in wages and other chronic issues.
However, Pakistani journalists along with other journalists of the world marked the World Press Freedom Day on Sunday.
Since the current PTI led regime came into power in centre in 2018, the fraternity started facing multiple issues and still there is no end to it. Apparently there seems all well on papers while in literal sense things have gone from bad to the worst. The Unions of Journalists (UJs) could not play their due role to halt this process. Some members of fraternity as individuals have been registering their protests and highlighting the issues being faced by the journalists on some forums. However, collectively UJs couldn’t perform the task which was required of them in these circumstances.
There are many media persons who even passed away recently due to facing matters which naturally arise when someone becomes joblessness. At the the moment the journalists are facing the worst ever circumstances in Pakistan. However, despite facing these dilemmas they are performing their duties accordingly and registering their protest against the prevailing circumstances.
Media workers passing through their worst times: KUJ
Meanwhile Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) has said that Pakistani journalists and media workers have been passing through their worst times in terms of press freedom, employment and their safety and security.
In a statement to mark the World Press Freedom Day on May 3rd, 2020, KUJ said a renewed and well-spirited pledge was the need of the time to keep the free media flag afloat, as hostilities were tightening their grips on the independent and free media in Pakistan.
The hostile situation has become insidiously for the free journalism in view of the abject polarisation and division within amongst the journalist community, which see a new division within their ranks with every passing day.
On the Day, KUJ demanded the government and the political parties to learn the lessons from the unprecedented pandemic of COVID-19, which has crippled the country, along with other countries of the world.
“It is a high time to reflect, and a new social contact is needed to be drawn so the post-pandemic Pakistan could emerge as a healthy nation in all sphere of life, especially establishing free media that ensures democracies,” said Ashraf Khan, the president of the KUJ.
The KUJ also demanded the government of taking swift actions to end the plight of journalists in the hands of the media juggernauts as well as the the government, which were equally responsible for the current economic miseries of the journalists.
“If the journalists economic slaughter go on un-abetted, we dont see any future of the press in the country and thus no transparency,” Ahmed Khan Malik, the secretary general of the KUJ said.
“We demand the media organisations clear all their financial dues of the journalists pending for months and even for an year.”
