The sub-committee held discussions with Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE), Freedom Network, National Press Club, All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) and all other relevant stakeholders before finalizing the draft.
The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Senator Kamil Ali Agha in which Senator Farhatullah Babar explained the salient features of the draft bill. He said National Journalists Protection Council will include journalist bodies, media safety experts, human rights activists nominated by the National Commission on Human Rights and a special prosecutor to investigate and prosecute crimes against journalists, besides official representatives from Ministries of Information, Interior and Law and Justice, PEMRA and principal information officer.
The council will operate a Journalists Safety Fund to assist the journalists under attack, ascertain and address causes of impunity of crimes against journalists and formulate in consultation with APNS, PBA, CPNE and PBA and implement safety and security policies. The Council has also been tasked to develop policies for digital safety and protection of online spaces for journalists needed for a safe environment for journalistic work, he said.
The scope of beneficiaries has been extended to cover all permanent and contractual journalists employed by private or state media organizations possessing valid accredited identification cards. The Bill extends to whole of Pakistan until relevant provincial laws are enacted and shall come into force at once.
Farhatullah Babar said that the UN recommendation of appointing a special prosecutor for crimes against journalists has also been provided in the bill. The special prosecutor will oversee prosecution of the cases of crimes against journalists and also devise a mechanism for combating impunity of crimes against journalists, he said.
Senator Babar said that the subcommittee was conscious that in a number of cases, the official agencies were accused of involvement in crimes against journalists. The special prosecutor shall also devise special system to address allegations of involvement of state agencies, he said.
This is a groundbreaking initiative and is along the line of the Right to Information Legislation to provide some mechanism for questioning agencies within a limited framework, he said.
A fund called Journalists Safety Fund to be administered by the Council has also been provided. Initially the government will make a donation of Rs 200 million but every media organization shall also make regular contributions towards it in proportion to the number of employees employed by it.
However the committee decided to levy a fixed percentage of the revenue of each media house towards the fund and asked the Information Ministry for its input. The Council shall also have the authority to raise its own funds from donations.
The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the draft bill states that journalists and media persons have increasingly faced threats to their lives to prevent them from the performance of their professional duties. Unfortunately Pakistan ranks high among countries declared most dangerous for journalists. Scores of journalists have fallen victims of violence during the last one-and-a-half-decades. Worse still, crimes against journalists have been taking place with impunity, and with exception of two or three cases, there has been no conviction of the perpetrators of crimes against them.
Protection of citizens against crimes is the responsibility of the state as is clearly laid down in the Constitution of Pakistan. Journalists face peculiar threats because of the nature of their duties to keep the public informed through reporting, analyses of events and expression of opinions. This calls for a focused and dedicated system of protecting them from occupational hazards, as safety, security and protection of journalists is the shared responsibility of all stakeholders namely the government, the media houses/organizations/ employers and the journalists themselves.
This bill seeks to address the issues involved in the safety, security and protection of journalists through a multi-pronged effort with shared responsibility of all stakeholders. The committee decided the amendment sought in the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2017 moved by Senator Mian Muhammad Ateeq Sheikh is already covered in PEMRA's Code of Conduct and, hence, the amendment is not needed. The Committee requested the mover to withdraw the amendment bill.
Regarding mismanagement in the affairs of APP Balochistan, the committee was told that 25 out of 26 Balochistan domiciles have been verified and the employees are from Balochistan. The report on the remaining domicile will be shared soon. Whereas 28 seats are vacant about which the Senate and Supreme Court have directed to recruit employees. The committee also directed to regularize those employees who are on the contract. The committee directed to take the matter up in the shortest time possible.
The committee was told the cheques of journalists working in news and current affairs programs of Radio Pakistan for the months of September, October and November have been issued. It was also told that gratuity/commutation payment to retired employees of Radio Pakistan will also be made by the end of February.
The committee took notice of issues in agreement of air time rent of SRBC owned Television Channel ATV. The committee was assured by secretary information to give all relevant details and answers to queries in the next meeting.