Daily Times

Islamabad: Shortly after the attack that took place in New Zealands’ Christchurch mosque Al Noor and the Linwood Islamic Centre, where a total of 50 worshippers were martyred, and 50 more injured, journalist Gharidah Farooqi posted a picture of the terrorist who she claimed according to her reliable sources, had visited Pakistan last year.

A troll uploaded his video on social media, calling upon the support of others, in his bid to condemn Gharidah Farooqi’s Tweet for an unknown reason. Farooqi’s Tweet further resulted in an onslaught of abuse online. Her words were misused and a campaign was initiated against her with some calling for her murder.

Where she was met with criticism and uncalled for condemnation and threats, Farooqi also garnered massive support from prominent journalists, women protection agencies, analysts, policymakers, writers and non-governmental organisations.

For the same, Coalition for Women in Journalism (CFWIJ) released a video on Thursday, calling out these life-threatening trolls and posted on behalf of Farooqi online, saying, “Our member Farooqi is no stranger to trolls. Online harassment abuse and trolling of women journalists in Pakistan has become the new ‘normal’.”

Farooqi’s statement on the matter was posted in the video which read, “All of this started with a Tweet where I reported only facts for which I was called a ‘traitor’. A video was made to provoke people against me, including telling people to kill me or shoot me. I have reached out to the Federal Investigation Agency and I’ve alerted the information minister. I’ve even reached out to Prime Minister Imran Khan. I’ve demanded security but it hasn’t been provided to me.”

CFWIJ stated, “We call upon journalists, press and rights groups to join us to rally and support Farooqi.”

The video further showed an earlier Tweet by CFWIJ that read, “We’re alarmed by the malicious campaign against @GFarooqi. Such content and threats of physical violence should be taken seriously and her safety must be ensured and culprits punished.”

The video also shared a Tweet by Amnesty International South Asia that read, “The vicious attack, death threats and abuse being hurled at @GFarooqi underscore the critical need to protect women online. We hope serious action will be taken against those who make women feel unsafe.”

Committee to Protect Journalists in Asia’s Tweet was also featured that read, “@CPJAsia joins the condemnation of these grotesque attacks on @GFarooqi. Her security needs to be assured and the perpetrators brought to justice.”

Lastly, the video stated that CFWIJ Founding Director Kiran Nazish says, “Women journalists will never back down. These trolls, as horrible as they are, won’t deter our colleague and member Farooqi from doing her work. But we recognise these trolls as efforts to stifle journalists and their content reflects badly on Pakistani society.”

No doubt, that the persistent online campaign against Farooqi is alarming.

CFWIJ said that the fact that Farooqi is being targeted for simply reporting facts and not even expressing an opinion is telling. This campaign must be stopped immediately.

“The coalition believes that the responsibility lies with not just social media platforms but also local authorities. We urge the government to take proactive measures to ensure that no harm comes to Farooqi,” it maintains.

Talking exclusively to Daily Times, journalist and writer Nasim Zehra said that Gharidah Farooqi has already registered a complaint with the Cyber Crime Unit. Why isn’t an action being taken yet, she questioned.