Daily Times

Muhammad Arif was part of the motorcade travelling on a truck following Benazir Bhutto’s vehicle with other photographers to cover BB’s historical return from eight years of self-exile in 2007. Dressed in patriotic green and white on a customized shipping container when BB started her slow procession, not only Pakistani, but the whole world was waiting to see the impact of her comeback. Arif too, wanted to shoot best footages of his life, for the sake of truth, information and above all to give his employer a taste of best and exclusive coverage. Starting from the Airport he accompanied the slow moving motorcade in his pursuit to find the breaking segment and like many other newsmen rushed towards the site of the first blast, while the second blast occurred moments after the first that took his life. Journalists on the frontline of breaking news events realize the dangers they face but it was saddened to learn that Arif had no safety kit and was not wearing even a helmet.

While recalling Arif’s last moment, ‘Asim Tanveer’, then from Reuters and a close friend of Arif says that Arif was a dedicated video journalist and was loyal to his employer. Unfortunately, they did not give him any protective equipment required for covering a conflict or sensitive event, while the news of threats to BB’s life was very much there in the air. ‘Before starting for Dubai to interview BB and accompanying her to Karachi for further coverage my office had briefed me about the dangers and security situation and my team was well equipped with safety kit but Arif was given nothing from his office, not even a helmet,’ Tanveer  said. ‘Local media outlets don’t really care for journalists, they just want the breaking items to be done, and that’s all, he added.

Remembering the Karsaz incident photojournalist Athar Hussain expressed deep sorrow over losing Muhammad Arif to the blast. ‘Arif was enthusiastic and dedicated it is unfortunate that we have lost him’. Hussain too was covering BB’s return for Reuters and was injured in the blast. Hussain was also injured in the twin blast incident near the Pakistan-American Cultural Centre of PACC in 2004. ‘I was not alone, 17 journalists were injured in the PACC second sequential blast as they gathered after the first one,’ he said.

The amount of cost Pakistan’s journalists have paid during this war of terror remained unaccounted. A comprehensive study suggests that until 2001, Pakistan had not experienced a single suicide attack but by the end of 2009, the country had endured over 200 suicide attacks (including 87 in 2009 alone) and close to 500 bomb explosions and IED detonations. Undoubtedly, after September 9/11 2001 attacks in the US, there emerged a new culture of suicide attacks and bomb explosions in Pakistan. While reporting these incidents, on the frontline of newsgathering process, photo and video journalists were often the first to find them in the line of fire. Media outlets should have trained their journalists before assigning events of sensitive nature and provide them with safety kits.

Karsaz bombing became a model of case study as it had targeted a former prime minister BB’s homecoming procession while she was being warned of dangers. Therefore, security concerns were not hidden. Asked whether there was any safety measure in place during those bomb blasts, the Secretary of Karachi Union of Journalist (KUJ), Faheem Siddiqui said, employers did not follow any safety method for media personals. Danger was always there in the line of duty. But no media outlet took any step in this connection. Whether media houses were aware of the dangers, ‘yes they were very much aware of the dangers and risks journalists could face, but the owners did not prioritize safety of their journalists,’ he said. Karachi has been under terror attacks and blasts for a while and journalists were injured and martyred too. It has happened in Balochistan too. Even safety training could have saved many, Siddiqui observed.

Surprisingly, many of the journalists are not even aware of any such protective measures or trainings Photo journalist ‘Javed Jaija’ was not warned of any danger or security concerns by his office when he was assigned to cover 12^th Rabiul Awal congregation at Nishtar Park in 2006. “When I reached the venue the maghrib prayer had already started. There was a deafening sound of blast that raptured my eardrum, one of my leg and hand fractured and I found myself in the hospital. Jaija works for a regional daily and till to this date believes that it was not the responsibility of his employer to warn of, train or prepare him for such events. ‘They paid my hospital bills with paid leaves then why should I ask them for safety kit? He argued.

Journalists face extraordinary risks while reporting conflict or sensitive events. They tell human stories and performing greater social service. It is necessary to underscore the dangers media personals face in the process of news gathering and to equip them with professional readiness to cover complex events.

‘Despite a mega-mushroom growth in Pakistan’s media, the concept of safety training for journalists has not developed and frontline journalists lack safety preparedness, President Karachi Press Club (KPC) Fazil Jamili said. Furthermore, journalists themselves do not follow safety guidelines due to lack of basic training and it is a general practice not to take safety precaution while covering such rallies.

Are media employers doing their utmost to guarantee journalists’ safety? Do they practice insuring journalists in case of any causality or bodily harm or provide aftercare support? The question why employers do not extend post-trauma medical cover has been reverberating across Pakistan’s media field as a health journalist in need was left unattended and uncared by her employer.

Health journalist ‘Zar Nageen Ghatala’, single parent of two, lay unconscious and scratched under a pile of broken glasses after the massive blast outside Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Center (JPMC), unaware of the fact that she was actually hit by a splinter, not a piece of glass. Ghatala was reporting for an Urdu daily when she went to the JPMC to access the blast toll on February 5, 2010, and was hit by a splinter during the second successive blast outside the hospital. That splinter pierced through her backbone damaged several nerves and eventually she developed a permanent neuro disorder without proper medical care. Ghatala could not afford a surgical procedure to remove the metal as she was not given any aftercare support from her then employer till today. ‘I was not warned of any danger, nor was I prepared for any such incident she recalls. ‘I went to Jinnah to do a story of the losses’. I had just come out of the emergency and was helping a crying woman find her missing son where some people had gathered. Suddenly, was pushed down by a force. ‘When I regained, there were broken glasses all around. I thought it was a small scar and was about to leave the hospital after a volunteer cleaned my wounds. But Abdul Sattar Edhi sahib himself drove me to Liaquat National. ‘It is poisonous and you must get it examined,’ he said. They conducted MRI and asked me to stay overnight but I ignored as I had to file the story. ‘I was already facing a salary crisis. When my condition worsened, I requested all my known colleagues to get me examined from a hospital. But none came forward with help.

Member Press Council of Pakistan and former secretary KPC, Aamir Latif local media houses do not offer insurances to journalists whether it is health or other. ‘Journalist unions and the employers both have been neglecting safety and insurance issues. Sadly, cameras of the electronic media houses are insured but the users behind the cameras are not,’ he added. I am also a witness to Karsaz blast. Muhammad Arif died on spot in front of me. Like Arif, we all ran towards the blast point and the second blast occurred. Because that time we were unfamiliar with conflict zone reporting tricks while that time Pakistan was gripped by terrorist attacks.

Government’s new law:

While both Jamili and Siddiqui hoped that the new media safety act could be a ray of hope for the journalists as it will hold media outlet owners accountable for a loss of journalist’s life and guaranty legal insurance. The law will mandate media house owners to provide training to journalists before sending them to conflict reporting.  Latif in contrary said the new policy draft is very murky as it has no neutral or independent body to decide about fake news offence. The law will give the government an upper hand to control the media thus conflicting with the right of press freedom.

The writer is an investigative journalist based in Karachi. She can be reached at shaziatasneemf@yahoo.com