Daily Times

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said that the country had improved seven points in World Press Freedom ranking which reflected that the media enjoyed complete freedom during tenure of the coalition government that believed in freedom of expression. The world press freedom ranking was release by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) the other day. The minister, in a news statement, said the coalition government had been taking tangible measures to protect journalists in line with the vision of Shehbaz Sharif who fully believed in freedom of media.

“The Constitution of Pakistan not only guarantees freedom of the press, but also allows all the citizens to access accurate information,” the minister said while paying tribute to those journalists who lost their lives in search of truth. She also recalled “difficult period” for journalism in Pakistan especially during a period from 2018 to 2022. During the four years of PTI rule, there was a “mysterious censorship” in the country that terrified journalists. In 2017, Pakistan was ranked 139th in the World Press Freedom Index mainly due to the PTI’s anti-media policies, she said, adding the country’s ranking was dropped by 12 points.

Marriyum said Imran Khan who ruled the country for four years was given the shameful title of “Press Freedom Predator”. Imran Khan has not only silenced journalists but also got them kidnapped, she said, declaring the PTI’s four-year tenure “the most dangerous period” for media persons. She said by imposing restrictions on media, one might mislead the people but ultimately the truth prevailed. The previous government used different tactics to muzzle the voice of journalists, she said, adding Imran vented out the anger of his failures on journalists and media institutions instead of rectifying his mistakes. “Journalists make society strong as it is said that information is power and a journalist gives you that power,” she maintained.

Pakistan’s ranking improved by seven places in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) as the country was placed at 150th position among 180 countries. While citing the reason for the improvement in Pakistan’s position from 157 in 2022 to 150 this year, RSF noted that Pakistan achieved the improved ranking because, after the change of government in 2022, constraints on the media were loosened. It is a significant achievement as compared to last year when Pakistan came down to 157 in 2022 from its ranking of 145 in 2021 and the then prime minister Imran Khan was declared a press freedom predator along with Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi.

This year India’s position on the Press Freedom Index further worsened as it dropped from 150 last year to 161 in 2023, losing 11 points. Citing reasons for slip in the ranking of India, RSF stated, “The violence against journalists, the politically partisan media and the concentration of media ownership all demonstrate that press freedom is in crisis in ‘the world’s largest democracy.”

The RSF report further noted that Modi has an army of supporters “who track down all online reporting regarded as critical of the government and wage horrific harassment campaigns against the sources. Caught between these two forms of extreme pressure, many journalists are, in practice, forced to censor themselves.”