Journalists demand end to censorship on Press Freedom Day

KARACHI:

Journalists, political leaders, labour representatives and civil society activists on Sunday marked World Press Freedom Day with a strong call for an end to censorship, repeal of restrictive laws and urgent measures to protect media workers, as a joint seminar in Karachi Press Club adopted a comprehensive resolution highlighting the worsening state of press freedom in Pakistan.

The seminar was jointly organised by the Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP).

Participants noted that this year's World Press Freedom Day is being observed in Pakistan under "extremely inimical conditions," not only for journalists but also for citizens seeking to exercise their constitutional rights to freedom of expression and access to information.

The gathering expressed grave concern over increasing restrictions, intimidation tactics and economic pressures facing the media industry.

The resolution adopted at the seminar demanded that the government and its institutions immediately halt censorship and harassment of journalists.