The Pakistan Human Rights Commission (HRCP) expressed on Wednesday a “serious concern” about the government that retains public sector advertisements of the publications considered “criticisms of their policies”, including Sunrise.
During a three -day meeting in Islamabad on February 25, the Federal Union of Journalists of Pakistan had torn (PFUJ) broken down the current government’s efforts to promulgate antimedia laws and point to critical voices under the appearance of “false news.”
He said that during the last seven decades, successive military and civil governments had used government ads as a tool or bribery to promote their own false news. Cited the example of SunriseThat federal governments, Punjab and Sindh have denied government ads due to their critical report and editorial approach.
Meanwhile, the PFUJ said the government had declared official means such as Pakistan television, Pakistan radio and the Associated Press of Pakistan “Strategic Institutions”, while these entities were used for decades to promote “false news”.
In a statement that expresses a similar feeling published in X Today, the HRCP said it pointed out with “it would be concern that the government has continued to retain the public sector ads of some newspapers such as SunriseConsidered critical of his policies, as he recently stressed in the Declaration of Islamabad of Pfuj. “
At the same time, he said that other newspapers “seem to have been favored with important government ads, including those presented as news in violation of journalistic norms.”
The HVCP reminded the government that it was “constitutionally obliged” to protect people’s right to information, as well as their freedom of expression.
“The tacit censorship in the form of financial pressure should not be allowed to control the narratives or the press freedom. By threatening the survival of independent journalism and critical editorial policies, the government is doing themselves, and people who say they represent a huge long -term service. “
Similarly, the president of Karachi Press Club, Fazil Jamili, said in a statement that the organization “strongly condemns the government’s decision to retain advertisements Sunrise Periodic in retaliation for its independent editorial policy ”.
He said that the “shameless attempt to suffocate freedom of expression and freedom of the press” was “unacceptable.”
“We sympathize with Sunrise and promise to fight together against all efforts to stop freedom of expression in Pakistan. The KPC will continue to advocate by an independent and vibrant means, which is essential for a healthy democracy, ”he concluded.
SunriseIn an editorial today, he stressed that federal and Punjab governments have denied the ads since last October, while the Sindh government has also periodically retained its ads for arbitrary reasons.
He pointed out that after the call ‘Sunrise Leaks’, the circulation of the document was blocked in large parts of the country, especially the areas of acantonation, by order of certain people.
“Others do not always agree with their position, but pressure tactics will not force Sunrise To abandon journalism of principles, ”said the publisher.
