Daily Times

After going missing for almost an entire day, Jibran Nasir, one of the country’s most critical voices, returned to the safety of his house. Nasir’s disappearance came in the midst of many being arrested in the wake of the May 9 violence. There is no question that it was Nasir’s protestations on social media that sealed his fate-many rightfully wondered if he was ever going to come back at all.

Indeed, in Pakistan, it is not unusual for journalists and civil rights activists to disappear into oblivion, especially in the present day, which is described as the darkest era of press freedom to date, even worse than during General Zia’s military dictatorship. The trend towards heavy censorship predates the current coalition government-freedom of speech is not a guarantee but a luxury in Pakistan where sedition laws are routinely weaponised to victimize political opponents and human rights activists.

Being a dissident-or even raising a critical voice-has always been dangerous in Pakistan, regardless of the target. Political parties, judges and ordinary citizens alike are routinely thrown into jail. But the problem, once confined to the country’s peripheries, is only getting worse with time, with journalists in major cities such as Islamabad and Lahore now threatened for speaking the truth. But the latest attempts at curtailing press freedoms leave no one untouched.

The second journalists toe out of line and contradict the official narrative, they are met with violence and repression. Attacks against the press have grown by 40% in a single year-the law is often used as a smokescreen to restrict free speech. Any criticism is construed as sedition, that is if one is even lucky enough to be tried in court. Many people disappear into thin air.

In Pakistan, the protection afforded to free speech is fast dwindling. The authorities clearly see human rights as somewhat of an obstacle to overcome rather than a fundamental liberty that must be defended. *