For the sake of the truth

Since the 2002 abduction and murder of Daniel Pearl, 15 Pakistani journalists have died because of their work.

A rather alarming news report in The New York Times (NYT) suggests that there is significant evidence linking the ISI with the brutal death of journalist Saleem Shahzad. Immediately after Shahzad’s body was found dumped in a canal, the ISI had firmly denied any role in the affair. But since then, the ugly insinuations have failed to fade away. The representative of the New York-based Human Rights Watch had made public an email from Shahzad, which said that he faced a threat from the agencies. The All Pakistan Newspapers Society chief had endorsed the authenticity of the contents of the mail.

There may yet be a great deal we do not know about the affair. It is hard to say how authentic the NYT report is. The allegations also add to the strain already facing Pakistan and the US. The pressure on authorities continues to mount steadily. The media watchdog body, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), has demanded that the president of Pakistan give an explanation as to the role of agencies in the intimidation of journalists. The CPJ, also headquartered in New York, has also stated that since the 2002 abduction and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, 15 Pakistani journalists have died because of their work. They include men like Hayatullah Khan, whose body was found in North Waziristan in June 2006, six months after he ‘disappeared’. Agencies were accused of being behind the murder.

As the CPJ points out, all 15 cases of murder remain unsolved. This is unacceptable. It can only pave the way for other deaths as horrendous as those of Shahzad’s. What is needed is an independent investigation into the case, so that the truth can emerge and rumours laid to rest. This is all the more vital given that the ISI has been accused in a matter that has potentially grave implications, reaching well beyond the tragic death of a single journalist. The case has created many waves, and these will not die out till we have creditable answers to all the questions that continue to come up.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 7^th, 2011.