'Beat' reporters arrive in Karachi on motorcycle with a message

KARACHI: Journalists Salman Shahzad and Muhammad Wali Afridi were delirious with happiness and exhaustion when they reached their last destination, the Karachi Press Club, after traveling from Peshawar on motorcycle in a bid to highlight the dangers their kind face in the line of duty.

Their journey started on May 26.

"We did this to draw attention to the unsafe conditions faced by the journalists of the country, especially those in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the tribal areas," said Shahzad, 25, while speaking to The Express Tribune.

They stopped at press clubs in Nowshera, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan and Hyderabad on the way.

"We have collected data on the murders of 26 journalists who have been killed since 9/11. Thirteen of them were killed in just the last 13 months," said Shahzad. Then, on May 10, the death of news reporter Nasrullah Afridi in a bomb blast occurred in Peshawar.

"Nasrullah's death forced us to do something for the rights and protection of journalists in our region, which is why we planned this unique road trip from Peshawar to Karachi," said Shahzad, adding that they travelled for five days and five nights to reach the city.

He said that most people tried to discourage them and said that they would not get anything out of this exercise, and it would only be a waste of time and money.

"By going across Pakistan on a motorcycle, we wanted to give a message to the international community that the journalists of the country are unsafe," said Shahzad.

His partner, Muhammad Wali Afridi, 26, hails from Khyber Agency. He told The Express Tribune that they managed the expenses with the help of the Khyber Union of Journalists. "We have named this journey 'Da Aman Safar' (journey of peace). We made special shirts and printed 'Save the Journalists' and flag of Pakistan on them," said Afridi.

He added that they had spent Rs40,000 so far.

The travel was difficult from Hyderabad to Karachi because of the strong winds. "We would travel for 20 kilometres and then rest," said Afridi. He said that they would stay in Karachi for two or three days and then return.

"Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the surrounding tribal areas are war zones, and the journalists are not trained or equipped accordingly. We realise that it's impossible for the government to provide security for journalists, but they can at least train them and provide bullet-proof jackets," said Afridi.

He said that they travelled 2,000kms to create awareness among the journalists of the country regarding their rights. "We are not doing this only for the journalists of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the tribal areas, but have travelled for the protection of the journalists of Pakistan, which also include an American and an Afghani journalist who were killed doing their duty," he explained.

If journalists are still not given any protection, they would start a journey from Pakistan to Afghanistan. But with the first leg of their trip completed, they plan to go home for now - by train.