Daily Times

For years and years, the journalist community has been clamouring about their rights as it performs their duties as professional media men in arduous circumstances who have no security and safety of their lives. Some rights are there in Article 19 of the Constitution of Pakistan regarding freedom of expression but their demand is much more than that based on their facing dangers and threats of sorts while performing their professional duties over the years. Federal Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen M Mazari has taken lots of pains as she has put together all known, unknown, desirable, and permissible rights for the working journalists. In doing so, she has also reminded them about their responsibilities such as avoiding subjectivity, sticking to objectivity, and ensuring they only cover and report true news, and shunning filing and reporting fake news in any manner as their commitment to the society and the state. Not only have all required and demanded rights been put together but also the machinery has been perhaps, to the best of memory of this scribe for the first, directed to ensure the implementation of these rights with or without complaints.

All this and even much more has been put together in the new comprehensive law known as “Journalists and Media Professionals Bill, 2021,” which has since been passed by both the Houses of the Parliament i.e. National Assembly, and the Senate after the other in November 2021. It attained the status of an act of the Parliament when this historical legislation, as for as the journalists’ community inclusive of print and electronic media is concerned, was assented to by President Dr Arif on December 01, 2021, in the presence of the federal ministers, large number of journalists and media professionals. The bill focused on protecting the lives of journalists, saving them from harassment and torture, and ensuring their welfare by giving facilities and health insurance. The President underlined the need for a culture of tolerance for the journalists because they were only reposting and disseminating information. He was happy to sign the historic bill as the act gave protection of life to the journalists who worked in hazardous conditions. The fake news was a serious issue and the Holy Quran had also warned against fake news as it could create chaos and wars between nations, remarked.

The Holy Quran also warned against fake news as it could create chaos.

Dilating a little more on the fake news, the President went on that the damage was also done to Afghanistan due to fake news and now the instruments and efficacy of news mediums have changed. Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ch Fawad Hussain remarked that the government would support the working journalists and strive to protect their rights. In her remarks, Federal Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari, who piloted the historic legislation for the journalists, said that the new law was progressive and ensured insurance of life and health to the journalists and media professionals.

Rights of journalists and media professionals, which have been put together in the new act, include the Right to life and protection against ill-treatment; Right to privacy and non-disclosure of sources; Independence in the performance of duties; Good faith obligation of journalists and media professionals; Protection from abusive, violent and intolerant behaviour, and; Protection against harassment.

The rights have been mentioned above briefly though the legislation provides details as these rights are to be exercised by the journalists and media professionals. The media should have information about their rights, as contained in the act, and also how they are going to ensure their implementation by the official procedure provided therein.

Besides the rights, which have been mentioned in the legislation, it also provides for the establishment of an independent Commission to entertain the complaints of the journalists and media professionals regarding hindrances and obstruction by the public and private quarters in the performance of their professional duties and availing the facilities guaranteed in it. Importantly, the media people should also know the composition of the Commission to whom they have to lodge complaints about their grievances and these will be by and largely entertained and solved within fourteen days.

The Commission will be headed by a Chairperson having demonstrable knowledge of or practical experience of a minimum of 20 years in matters relating to law, justice, and human rights and will comprise of a member of the Pakistan Bar Council, four journalists with over 25 years of experience nominated by the PFUJ, one nominated member each from Islamabad Union of Journalists, Karachi Union of Journalists, Lahore Union of Journalists, Quetta Union of Journalists and Peshawar Union of journalists, Secretary of the National Press Club, Secretary of the Parliamentary Reporters Association, Secretary of the Supreme Court Reporters Association, a representative of the Ministry of Human Rights, a representative of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Secretary of the Commission who shall not have a right to vote.

The composition of the Commission has been mentioned here purposely as it leaves much to be desired. Lahore-based Punjab Union of Journalists (PUJ) is among the oldest trade union body of the media people but it is missing somehow. Although the PUJ has more than a couple of factions, there is no Lahore Union of Journalists as such, which has been named in the Commission. It would have been better if the text of the new legislation had also been vetted by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting officially to avoid such misnomers and ensure due mention of PUJ.

The new legislation is undoubtedly a milestone work done by the Ministry of Human Rights but if the Information Ministry was involved in consultation before its finalization and submission to the Parliament, such blunders should not have occurred. The legislation has come into force but practically, it will be on the ground and working only after the appointment of the Chairman of the Commission and nomination of other members.

The new legislation also provides for the institution of the Journalists Welfare Scheme; Obligation to investigate, prosecute and penalize threats, coercion, acts of violence and abuse of journalists and media professionals, and combating impunity. Journalists representative organizations would be well-advised to remain in constant contact with the Ministries of Human Rights and Information to ensure implementation of the new legislation and also to point out deficiencies, shortcomings and hindrances noticed in its implementation so that the good intentions and objectives behind it are ensured and the Commission established under it performs its functions and duties objectively in line with the spirit behind the new act.

Journalists’ representative bodies would also be doing good work for the journalist’s community if the new act is got published in English as well as in Urdu and freely distributed among the media people throughout the country. Unless the journalists and media professionals know their rights enshrined in it and machinery provided therein for ensuring prompt response to their grievances and complaints, the appreciable purpose behind this commendable legislation will not be realized and achieved.

The writer is Lahore-based Freelance Journalist, Columnist and retired Deputy Controller (News) Radio Pakistan Islamabad and can be reached at zahidriffat@gmail.com