Pakistan Expels New York Time’s Bureau Chief

Pakistan is facing daunting challenges, including a violent insurgency that threatens the state. Yet its Interior Ministry just prior to the May 11 election had nothing better to do than to expel Declan Walsh, the New York Times’s bureau chief in Pakistan.

The reasons for the expulsion was not explained. However, a section of the Urdu press has quoted intelligence sources as saying that he was a spy and working for the CIA. He has also been accused of being a close friend of Raymond Davis, another CIA agent who was sent to America after he killed two Pakistanis in Lahore.

The expulsion letter was a two-sentence ibe. The action was taken “in view of your undesirable activities,” the letter read.

Mr. Declan Walsh, 39, has been based in Pakistan since 2004, working first for The Guardian and since 2012 for the NYT.

Jill Abramson, the NYT‘s executive editor, strongly protested the expulsion in a letter to the interior minister, Malik Muhammad Habib Khan.

Mr. Walsh “has a strong track record as a reporter of integrity who has at all times offered balanced, nuanced and factual reporting on Pakistan,” she wrote. “Your charge of ‘undesirable activities’ is vague and unsupported, and Mr. Walsh has received no further explanation of any alleged wrongdoing. We stand by his reporting.”

Mr. Walsh was on a social visit May 9 evening when he received a phone call from a number he did not recognize advising him to “come home now.” He arrived at 12:30 a.m. to find police officers waiting outside, along with a plainclothes officer who handed him the expulsion letter. While the exact circumstances of his expulsion are unusual, his punishment is not. Even as private media have grown more vibrant, Pakistani officials continue to restrict critical reporting and, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, the country remains one of the deadliest for journalists.

Without Mr. Walsh and journalists like him — both Pakistani and foreign — on the scene, Pakistanis and the international community would not know about the level of pre-election violence, including Taliban bombings and the abduction on May 9 of a candidate who is the son of a former prime minister.

Nor would they learn of the extent of Pakistan’s patronage networks, as Mr. Walsh reported on May 8. But maybe that is the point.

Freedom of Expression is a Myth in Pakistan

by Baseer Naveed

Freedom of expression is today at its lowest in the history of the country.

The people of the country have, in fact, never enjoyed freedom of expression. However, during the last decade or so the governments have claimed that they have given freedom of expression to the media.

A point of confusion is how the people compare the freedom of expression with the freedom of the media houses. The two are completely difference and far distant from each other.

In fact, much of the self-censorship comes from the media houses themselves as they do not wish to draw the ire of the government, judiciary, the armed forces and more so, that of the Muslim fundamentalists. Sadly the voices that really need to be heard, those of the peasant farmers and labourers in the industrial areas are ignored and therefore silenced by the media whose sole purpose is to gain advertising revenue. It is no longer a secret that the media houses are ‘driven’ by the armed forces through their Inter Services Public Relations office.

The judiciary, which has always been a poodle of the armed forces, neither of which has never really served the nation in its history, have both been given the status of a sacred cow.

One point of proof that freedom of expression is absent in the country is the fact that the media houses seldom allow any real criticism of the military, Muslim militants or religious extremists.

One example is as to how the state institutions and media houses have curbed free speech.

The restriction on the freedom of expression may be dated back to the very creation of the country.

Pakistan was created on the 14th August 1947 and the father of the nation gave his inaugural speech three days earlier on the 11th August. It is interesting to note that the speech of the Governor General-to-be, Mr. Jinnah, was itself censored. The interesting point was that only those portions were censored which were purely secular in their nature where Mr. Jinnah said that “you are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place or worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed that has nothing to do with the business of the State”. He further said “now I think we should keep that in front of us as our ideal and you will find that in course of time Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the State”.

Two years after the creation of Pakistan the so-called legislators passed a resolution entitled the ‘Objective Resolution of Pakistan’. In this resolution it was declared that sovereignty lay with Allah. This later became part of the constitution and denied the people the right to democracy, thereby creating the guidelines on the restrictions for the freedom of expression and the freedom to practice the religion of your choice. The country was declared a theocratic society where only Islam can prevail and no one else had any rights, the citizens were divided into Muslims and non Muslims. A clear demarcation was made between the majority and the minority, so all rights were recognized for Muslims and those who were not Muslim had no rights. The concept of equality for various sections of the society was supposed to be determined on this basis.

Again through the 1973 constitution, which was the first time anything was passed unanimously, the state took the responsibility to decide who is Muslim and who is not by making the fourth amendment in the constitution where the Ahmadis were declared as non-Muslim. Through this amendment state has the power to declare who is Muslim, strengthened the pressure groups, the Muslim fundamentalists, to take the responsibility of declaring Muslims and non Muslims.

The objective resolution was made part of the pre-amble of the constitution. But during the military regime of General Zia ul Haq the Objective Resolution was made as the part of the constitution. Those rights of minorities which were given in the original Objective Resolution were also deleted. General Zia has made three famous laws, the Blasphemy laws by inserting clause B and C, Qisas and Diyat, through which the evidence from women denied and the Had ordinance. So the rights of women and religious minority groups were denied.

This has resulted in self censorship of the media as the rules and regulations concerning the blasphemy laws are not being adhered to. These are that the arresting and investigating officer must be of the rank of Superintendent of Police. However, people are being arrested by the mob and if they are lucky, handed over alive to any police officer who happens to be present.

The media is extremely careful about what they say regarding the religious extremists as they can expect no protection or support from the authorities or judiciary. This was evident in the cases of the assassinations of the governor of Punjab, Taseer and the Federal Minister on Religious Minorities, Mr. Bhatti where the perpetrators of the violence have either gone unpunished or are being treated as heroes. The lawyers themselves, who are supposed to be protectors of the law, came out in support of the assassins, blaming the victims as blasphemers.

Although the blasphemy law is not the subject of this particular article I mention it because it has a direct affect on the freedom of expression in that, while the constitution of Pakistan guarantees freedom of religion the actual situation in the country is very much different and any media person or company speaking out in support of the minorities soon faces attacks ranging from hate speeches to physical violence and even death.

The Blasphemy law in any way has been made a killer. If any person is accused of Blasphemy particularly on the charges of defiling the name of last prophet (PBUH) he or she has to face the death penalty from the law or state and if not then fundamentalist will murder him/she. In a case of two Christians who were sentenced on section 295 B they were released by high court Mr. Justice Arif Bhatti, as they were scavengers and cannot read any word. After their release they left Pakistan but the Justice was murdered for releasing the blasphemers.

One judge of Session court has to leave the country when he gave the death sentenced to the killer of former Governor of Punjab. He was announced by the fundamentalists as liable to be killed because he has given punishment to the hero of Islam. The Governor of Punjab was murdered because he used his right of freedom of expression in support of one, Asia Bibi, who was sentenced on the charges of blasphemy.

In fact, freedom of expression is limited by the same constitution. In the constitution Ahmadis were declared non-Muslim. This is in effect a contradiction as the constitution on the one hand declares the freedom to practice the religion of your choice but on the other places the Ahmadis in a position that leaves them open to attack by the fundamentalists. Any media house coming out in their support or criticising the fundamentalists are liable to the same degree of violence as the Ahmadis themselves.

The media is also suppressed by the military when they attempt to report on the nexus between the armed forces and the militant jihadists. One report noted that during 2006 about ten journalists were kidnapped by security forces apparently belonging to military secret services, while performing their professional duties. The report also revealed that the very few journalists based in the tribal areas in Baluchistan are caught in the crossfire between security forces, jihadist militants and tribal chiefs fighting each other to control the area.

Another area which is strictly forbidden to journalists is reporting on the corruption of the politicians, the military and the judiciary. These institutions have become sacred cows, untouchable by anyone other than their own hierarchy. Any journalists brave enough to highlight this corruption is liable to face the same fate as those mentioned earlier.

Often the freedom of expression is restricted in the names of vulgarity, morality and obscenity; three items that have never been clearly defined in the law or by any court. However, this does not deter the authorities, those with vested interests and the media houses that are quick to make use of these accusations to enforce self censorship.

In an attempt to define these issues the Pakistan Electronic Media Authority called for a consultative conference to discuss them. However, no one turned up so they have arranged another conference for later this month. It is hoped that by mutual consent they will be able to put forward proposals to the apex court of the land.

Through the constitution and laws there are many restrictions on the freedom of expression and freedom of media. The “Official Secret Act of 1923” is still operative. Anything which state thinks is prejudicial to the interest of the state or against the state should be tried under this act. Those matters which are made as classified cannot be published or even be spoken of.

Safety act and Telegraph act are also used for curbing the right of freedom of expression. No material can be published or spoken of which is against the interest of the state.

The Newspapers Periodical and News agencies Ordinance 2002 is still in force through which until and unless it gives the declaration for publication, no periodical or newspaper can be printed. This is a clear cut violation of Article 19 of the ICCPR, constitution of Pakistan.

PEMRA is a regulatory body which gives out licenses for the production of any type of electronic channel. Permission has to be taken from government. It is not like Europe or USA that any person or organization can make their own channel—the FM radio and TV.

After 1985, which was the period of military rule, the pressure groups and fundamentalists have taken the role of state and tactics of coercion and intimidation for implementation of their own rules. The role of the government or state has been reduced to the minimum.

The contempt of court is also another method of restricting the freedom of expression. The government says there is no law against the contempt of court but the Supreme Court relies on the contempt of court ordinance of 2004 to use it as minimizing the freedom of expression particularly on the decisions of the court.

There is a draft for legislation on access to information before the government and the media houses but it can be termed as just lip service to try and show that something is being done. It does not define who will decide what is secret and what is not. Contrary to global practices, the government has kept everything secret until it is declared to be made public. The data collection and maintenance mechanisms are very poor in our country.

The draft freedom of information law allows the government and its agencies to classify anything they want to be exempt from being made public, without explanation as to why they are doing so. The procedure to declare something secret has not been revealed. And the big question is who exactly is authorised to declare anything secret?

The constitution declares quite clearly that Pakistan is an Islamic country. Therefore, quite simply there is no freedom of expression as the country is run purely on a religious basis.

 

Journalist Aslam Butt Calls Asian HRs’ Baseer Naveed a Bastard

April 10, 2013

Mr. Naseer Hashmi — Editor
Daily Ummat
Room No.1, 1st Floor
Block numbe 4, Hockey club of Pakistan
Liaquat Barracks, Karachi,
PAKISTAN

Fax: 92 21 3655275
ummat@ummatpublication.com, news@ummatpublication.com

RE: Life threat from your correspondent at Islamabad

Dear Mr. Naseer,

Following the article “PAKISTAN: Stupidity of the Ideology of Pakistan” which was issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission on April 8, 2013 the author of that article, Mr. Baseer Naveed who is a Senior Researcher of our organisation received the following threat from Mr. Aslam Butt, who claims that he is a correspondent of the ‘Daily Ummat’ at Islamabad.

Mr. Butt has threatened that, “…..I would locate you one day and teach you such a terrible lesson on abusing our motherland that dwellers of Hong Kong would remember it for long”.

The text of the email is copied herewith:

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Aslam Butt <aslamdawn64@hotmail.com>
Date: 8 April 2013 22:58
Subject: U are an established bastard~!!!
To: “baseer.naweed@ahrc.asia” <baseer.naweed@ahrc.asia>

Baseer Naveed;- You are indeed an established bastard who is ridiculing Pakistan while seated with English bastards of Chinese origin; can you or other minions like you could ever question the creation of the state of Hong Kong ; if you are damn opposed to the religion of Islam who stops you to become a Christian or a follower of the Buddhism; I wish Hong Kong could invent a time machine and take you to the past where you could marry your mother with an English man and then you could take rebirth as a Douglass, David or Jacob; while reliant on the charities of the anti Islam forces third rated minions like you cannot challenge the ideology of this country and indeed you are to be punished one day for having breached our patriotic sentiments or God willing I would locate you one day and teach you such a terrible lesson on abusing our motherland that dwellers of Hong Kong would remember it for long.

Aslam Butt
Correspondent Daily Ummat Karachi
in Islamabad.
and Correspondent Daily Urdu News Jehhad Saudi Arabia.
in Islamabad.

It is extremely disturbing that a correspondent from your esteemed organization is issuing threats to a person’s life and using your organization as a platform to do this.

Issuing threats against a person’s life is a matter of concern and one that, as a human rights organisation, we take extremely seriously. If the author of this email, Mr. Aslam Butt, or anyone else for that matter, takes exception to any of the comments or issues raised in the above article he has every right to make his comments and disagreement known. However, to resort to the type of language he has used in his email is not only criminal but also illegal and belittles his claim to be a professional journalist. We would therefore ask you if Mr. Butt sent this email with the consent and knowledge of your organisation. If he did not then we would like to know what action you intend to take against him.

We hope you will take appropriate action to dismiss the impression that your organisation supports such threats and await your earliest possible response.

Danilo Reyes
Deputy Director
Asian Human Rights Commission

Mubeshir Luqman Target of a National Assembly Resolution

On March 06, 2013, the National Assembly after starting only 35 minutes late in its 13^th sitting of the current session adopted a resolution to demand action against “anchorpersons who are telecasting programmes against parliamentarians…without verification of the facts.”

The sitting witnessed low attendance of members as only 35 were present at the outset of the sitting while 45 were there at the adjournment.

The sitting which lasted for two hours and 42 minutes adopted the following Resolution:

“All anchorpersons who are telecasting programmes against parliamentarians and other entities without verification of the facts for some personal agendas or for some ulterior motives or for some unlawful gains or such anchorpersons who have been exposed for their non-professional conduct, this House strongly condemns such anchorpersons and demand from the owner of the media houses to expel them forthwith besides other due actions.”

This whole rigmarole of passing the resolution was quite immaturish and would only help in giving more publicity to Mubashir Luqman whose remarks against the Federal Minister for Education triggered the whole episode. The TV news channels are fast losing their viewership and such steps help in reviving their popularity.

 

Media Interpreting Islam For Us

Orya Maqbool Jan writes in Dunya that a real religious scholar is the one who is educated on a mat of a mosque for decades and has written books on the supremacy of Islam.

Democracy is a fraud. We are all in trouble of one kind or another today because of the un-Islamic banking system.

Democracy, free media and judiciary are a fitna. Our journalists fear nobody. They can publish anything against anyone and get away with it.

Sleeveless outfits are haram

Responding to a question by a reader, Aapa Hammad writes in Khwateen Ka Islam that sleeveless or half-sleeved outfits are haram for women unless they wear it for their husbands in the bedroom. 

She said unnatural sex between a husband and a wife was haram, although some men try to justify it. But during her menstrual periods, a woman could satisfy her man using other methods.

Pakistanis are the wisest nation in the world

Writing in Dunya, Rauf Klasra says his foreigner friend was surprised to hear about a survey according to which Germans were the wisest nation in the world. He thought Pakistanis were the wisest nation in the world because even the children here are politicians and experts on everything under the sun. The people of the West cannot even imagine the number of conspiracy theories that Pakistani children have memorized.

Media presents gloomy picture of Pakistan

Daily Jang quotes PM Raja Pervez Ashraf as saying that the situation in Pakistan is not bad at all. It is the media that presents a gloomy picture of Pakistan.

Donkeys are in demand

Nawae Waqt reports in its famous column Sare Rahe that a political party has asked for the election symbol of a donkey. The Election Commission has banned certain symbols like a donkey, a Lota and a shoe. But now that we know donkeys are in demand, if the request is approved, the price of donkeys will increase.

Flog those who celebrate Valentine’s Day

Reported in daily Jasarat (Feb 12), Mufti Naeem, administrator of Jamia Binoria in Karachi, has demanded a ban on Valentine’s Day celebrations declaring them un-Islamic, immoral and obscene. He said those who celebrate the day should be tried under Hudood laws and flogged in public. He accused the West of promoting obscenity through the Valentine’s Day.

Iran should drop nuclear bomb on its enemy

Quoted in daily Islam, Pir Izharul Bokhari says he hopes Iran will not keep its nuclear bomb in a beautiful cupboard in its drawing room but show the courage to use it when the enemy will threaten it. He urged the Pakistani government to drop a nuclear bomb on India if it crossed the Line of Control again.

Women wearing lenses will face God’s wrath

Weekly Jarar says women are not allowed to wear contact lenses. It is a great sin. When women wear lenses, the color of their eyes becomes attractive and lures strangers. Such women will face the wrath of God.

Women can also not wear sunglasses because it makes them look seductive and invites male attention.

Hoodbhoy is a traitor

Daily Jasarat criticizes renowned scientist Dr Pervez Hoodbhoy for writing a book in which he allegedly said Pakistan’s nuclear weapons were unsafe, or could fall into Al Qaeda’s hands.
It says everybody knows Hoodbhoy is a traitor. He dug a symbolic grave for Dr AQ Khan when Pakistan went nuclear.

Revealing clothes cause breast cancer

Writing in Khwateen Ka Islam, Aapa (Auntie) Hammad says 53% women suffer from breast cancer in Pakistan. The reason is that they wear thin and revealing shirts, which are forbidden in Islam. Breast cancer is a wrath of God for such women.

Kamran Khan & Hamid Mir’s Statement in the Supreme Court in the Dr Arslan Ifthikar Case

(Statement of Mr. Kamran Khan, Anchor, Executive Director, Geo News, submitted to the Supreme Court on June 07, 2012)

“I would like to state that my attention was first drawn to this subject in the second week of May [2012] when I received an anonymous phone call claiming that Dr. Arsalan Iftikhar son of the Chief Justice of Pakistan is allegedly using his position to extract money from wealthy people whose cases are pending before the Supreme Court of Pakistan. A separate phone caller, two days later, said that Dr Arsalan Iftikhar had

allegedly blackmailed real estate tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain whose case[s] were pending before the Supreme Court. I was also told that Malik Riaz Hussain has also gathered evidence to prove that he has been targeted for blackmail allegedly by Dr Arsalan Iftikhar….… I contacted Malik Riaz Sb with this explicit intention and met him in Karachi in the third week of May  where he basically confirmed the content of the information and after a lot of persuasion agreed to show me the documentary evidence… At a subsequent meeting Malik Riaz Sb showed me the dossiers that carry documents pertaining to Dr Asalan Iftikhar’s summer vacation trips to London over the past three years. There were tenancy agreements signed by Dr Arsalan Iftikhar for five star accomadations  [sic.] in Central London and receipts / invoices showed that the payments were made from the accounts/ credit cards controlled by Malik Riaz Sb or his family members in London.There were documents that also showed that travel and stay arrangements for Dr Arsalan Iftikhar and a female accomplice ( I don’t remember the name) in Monte Carlo were made from the accounts controlled by Mr Malik Riaz or his family members. According to these documents most payments including those of several shoppings made by Dr  Arsalan Iftikhar and other family members at pricey London stores were also made through credit cards owned by Malik Sb’s daughter and son in London…… My lordships I left that meeting with Malik Riaz Sb with  an impression that either he’s hell of a con, a forger par excellence or God forbid the son of the Chief Justice of Pakistan has sold the name of his great father….”

(Statement of Mr. Hamid Mir, Executive Editor, Geo TV, submitted to the Supreme Court on June 6, 2012) 

“On the eve of 31st May, I called Malik Riaz Sahib on phone and expressed my desire to meet him. [That evening] I met him at his residence in Islamabad, around 9:30 pm. His son Ali was also present… Malik Riaz asked someone to bring in  a file which included a set of documents. All the documents were photocopies. And according to Malik Riaz Sahib, [these documents showed that] Arsalan Iftikhar had taken a lot of money from his son and his son-in-law. Malik Riaz said that he also has a number of [incriminating] videos but he did not show me any such video…”

Who Should Own the News Media ?

by Javed Jabbar

For at least three reasons there is a need to consider alternative forms for the ownership of private news media instead of the single-owner or a small group-owner form.

The first reason is that news media have become one of the four pillars of the inter-related structure of society and State : the other three being the legislature, the judiciary and the executive.  Unlike the other three pillars, which are “owned” by the people at large, the privately-held news media belong to individuals or families or groups of investors on a commercial basis.  As an essential component of the contemporary nation-State, the determinant factor for privately-owned news media – as for the other three components – must be the public interest, not the private profit motive.

The second reason is the nature of news media content.   Unlike a physical product or tangible service purchased by a consumer, news media content absorbed by a citizen shapes awareness and perception about events and trends that affect citizen, society and State, that affect how an individual views the world at large.  Information and opinion exchanged between the seller and the buyer of shoes and shirts, of airplane seats and hotel rooms are limited to the quality, price and performance of a given item.  Branded goods and services sell because their buyer knows the predictable content in advance.  Whereas the content of news media in particular is unpredictable, volatile, unknown in advance.  There are relatively few media users who transcend the content they receive. News media virtually define the public agenda, shape attitudes, influence consumer spending through advertising. Such power must therefore be subject to non-partisan principles of the public domain.

The third reason is the instinctive non-transparency of news media about their own internal financial realities.  The public has no free, convenient access through websites to such information in so important a sector.  Data about the legislature, the executive and the judiciary is almost always instantly accessible.  Whereas data on several dimensions of the media  remains invisible.  For example :  employment terms (except for Wage Board Awards in print media ),  relationships with media-buying houses which purchase time and space  in bulk volumes, role of ratings agencies which measure viewership and popularity of programmes and channels, circulation of print media and the connection with advertising tariffs,  value of Government-controlled advertising, amounts paid to media by overseas entities to promote public service campaigns, the cartel-like media owners’ associations, cross-media dominance, cross-sectoral interests of news media proprietors in other fields.

Proprietorship of news media being different from the proprietorship of conventional commercial enterprises creates special obligations.  News media should always serve the public interest by dispensing fair, accurate, balanced, non-partisan content in a clear, coherent manner independent of commercial considerations and official influence.  Very few, if any, media enterprises meet such tough but essential criteria.  The only electronic news media owned by the State i.e. PTV and PBC are not purely public interest media.  In addition to being under Government control and despite being the sole recipient of the TV licence fee, PTV also has a voracious appetite for advertising revenue.  Poor, deficit-laden PBC is entirely at the mercy of Government control and is heavily subsidised to ensure survival.

News media enterprises have expanded and diversified into new media.  Despite uneven employment terms, they have created jobs for thousands.  At times they have suffered losses.  They have often withstood coercive pressures by Governments which misuse control of official advertising to intimidate them.  Yet many news media have also prospered exceedingly well.  Not a single large media group has gone bankrupt.

Our news media have rendered a valuable role in raising public awareness about important issues to unprecedented levels.  Some of their content and programmes do substantially, courageously serve the public interest.  Their satire and humour are inventive and entertaining.

Yet news media content has also become imbalanced.  Driven by a business model which seeks the lowest common denominator and the highest ratings, news media promote sensationalism, commercial excess, de-sensitization by inane repetition of violent actions, imitative competition and sheer speculation.   TV channels have dumbed down levels of taste and reduced calm, reasoned reflection.  Public discourse on TV in particular direly needs rescue from the heedless pursuit of maximum audiences and optimal profit.

One alternative model for the ownership of news media could comprise the following elements : all news media entities should be publicly listed companies required to be registered with at least one stock exchange.  Presently, only three media firms out of over 100 are listed i.e.(non-news) Hum TV, Media Times(Daily Times, Business Plus TV) and Southern Networks. No single share-holder or group should be permitted to hold more than, say, two per cent of shares to enable the widest possible dispersal of shares.  All financial aspects must be instantly accessible on websites .  Segments of civil society  such as professional associations, public interest bodies, service delivery organizations, rural community-based networks, charitable and social welfare forums, research and educational institutions chosen by an even-handed process could be entitled to also hold limited blocks of shares on a rotational basis. No one single interest-group would have the voting power to adversely influence content,  or control the management  of news media.

Selected strictly on the basis of professional competence and integrity, the management of such differently-owned news media would be accountable only to the widely-dispersed groups of citizen share-holders, not to a single individual or family or small group.

If willing to make the transition to leaders-managers, proprietors of existing news media could apply their skills and vast experience in a dynamic new direction.  They already have enough assets and income from other sectors : they will surely get a good price for their present shares in media enterprises!

After extensive consultation, new legislation and regulation can be formulated to ensure freedom of expression and accountability for alternative models for news media ownership.  A new era could commence in which   news media owned by the people truly serve the public interest in a balanced, transparent manner.

The writer is a former Federal Minister of Information and founder, Citizens’ Media Commission of Pakistan, 1997-2005.

 

 

Prostitution on Pakistan’s TV Channels

نہ صرف پاکستان بلکہ بیشتر نام نہاد مسلمان ممالک کے مرد حضرات شراب و کباب کے رسیا ہیں اور جو چالاک خواتین مردوں کی ان کمزوریوں سے فائدہ اٹھانا جانتی ہیں وہ شارٹ ٹرم میں تو بلندیوں کی انتہاء تک تو جا پہنچتی ہیں لیکن انجام انکا دردناک رونے دھونے سے بھرپور ہی ہوتا ہے۔

جہاں تک پاکستانی ٹی وی چینلز کا تعلق ہے، انکے پاس کوئی واضح ایجنڈا نہیں ہے اور نہ ہی بین الاقوامی میڈیا کا مقابلہ کرنے کی صلاحیت اور پروفیشنل ٹیم، یہی وجہ ہے کہ انڈین چینلز کو تو اخلاق باختہ قرار دیکر پاکستان میں بین کر دیا گیا لیکن مقامی چینلز کو بے حیائی عام کرنے کا ٹاسک مل گیا جو سنجیدہ ترین موضوع پر بھی اناڑی رپورٹر اور نیوز کاسٹر کی خبرنشر کرتے ہوئے انڈین گانا بیک گراؤنڈ میں بجانا ناظرین کو متوجہ کرنے کیلئے اپنی مجبوری سمجھتے ہیں۔

جہاں تک اس بات کا  تعلق ہے کہ بیشتر ٹی وی چینل جسم فروش خواتین سے متعلق پروگرام کیوں پیش کرتے ہیں، اسکی وجہ سادہ سی ہے کہ الیکٹرانک میڈیا میں داخلے اور ترقی کی چابی ماڈرن جسم فروش خواتین کے پاس ہی ہے جو اپنی اداؤں سے نہ صرف سینئیرز کا دل لبھانا جانتی ہیں بلکہ انہیں سیاستدانوں کی کرپشن کی حرام کی کمائی  میں سے اپنا حصہ لینا بھی بخوبی آتا ہے ۔ ہمیشہ ٹی وی چینلز سے نہائت قابل قابل مرد پروفیشنلز کو نکال باہر کردیا جاتا ہے لیکن یہ خواتین مخصوص ہنریافتہ ہونے کی وجہ سے اپنے آپ کو بچا لیتی ہے، جو خواتین کمپرومائز نہیں کرتی، وہ چاہے لاکھ ٹیلینٹڈ ہوں، قابل ہوں، انکا مقدر  بالآخر ایگزٹ ڈور ہی ہوتا ہے۔

پاکستانی نوجوان نسل کو اخلاقی پستی میں گرنے سے بچانے کیلئے نہایت ضروری ہے کہ انہیں ٹی وی سکرین پر چمکتی دمکتی گلیمرس دنیا کے اداکاراؤں کی ذاتی زندگی سے روشناس کرایا جائے،

آخر وہ کیا وجوہات ہیں کہ وینا ملک دنیا بھر میں اپنے فن کے جھنڈے گاڑنے کے باوجود اپنے لئے ایک ایسے مرد تلاش کرنے میں ناکام ہے جو اسے قبول کرلے، دوسری طرف کترینہ کیف بھی اپنی دو ڈیٹس کی ناکامی کے بعد اپنی ماں سے ارینجڈ میرج کا کہہ کر نیک پروین بی بی ثابت کرنا چاہ رہی ہے، ایسے ہی لوگوں کیلئے کہا گیا ہے کہ نوسو چوہے کھا کر بلی حج کو چلی۔

پاکستانی میڈیا کی نام نہاد معزز خواتین کا بھی ایسا ہی حال ہے جو اپنی قابلیت سے نہیں بلکہ اپنی اداؤں سے میڈیا میں اِن ہیں، شارٹ کٹ کی خاطر اپنے کولیگز سے تعلقات رکھتی ہیں ۔  ٹی وی سکرین پر عوام کو اخلاقی بھاشن دینے والے ٹی وی اینکرز نہ صرف  ان سے خفیہ شادیاں رچاتے ہیں بلکہ درجنوں نو وارد جونئیر خواتین صحافیوں پر دستِ شفقت رکھنا اپنا فرض سمجھتے ہیں۔ جب ایسے پست کیریکٹر کے لوگ میڈیا میں ہونگے تو وہ یہ ثابت کرنے کیلئے حمام میں سب ننگے ہیں، جسم فروش خواتین پر ہی پروگرام پیش کرکے عوام کو گمراہ کرنے کے ساتھ ساتھ اپنی ذاتی زندگی کو بھی جسٹیفائی کرنے کی کوشش کرتے ہیں۔

پاکستانی ٹی وی نے بلا شبہ عوام کو بہت شعور دیا لیکن جو شعور نہیں دے سکے وہ یہ ہے کہ نامحرم سے غیرضروری روابط جسمانی، روحانی، اخلاقی، مذہبی، نفسیاتی، معاشرتی، ہر طرح سے انسان کو کمزور کرتے ہیں اور اسکو بزدل بناتے ہیں، ڈر ڈر کر جینے پر مجبور کرتے ہیں۔ اور پلیز  مذہبی لوگوں کو سعودی اور ایرانی اپپورٹڈ حلوہ کھا کر قیلولہ فرمانے دیجیے، انکے بقول یہ سب تو امریکا کی سازش ہے، بھارت چاہتا ہی پاکستانیوں کو کمزور کرنا ہے اور اسرائیل کا ہاتھ ہے ان سب خرافات میں۔۔

ڈ  بھی اپنے سوئے ہوئے ضمیر کو مزید سلائیے، ٹی وی پر جسم فروشی کے آن ائر اور آف آئر زملاحظہکیجیے اور دنیا فتح تو ہو نہیں سکتی ہم پاکستانیوں سے نہ ہی ترقی یافتہ دنیا کا مقابلہ کرسکتے ہیں،  اپنی ہی ہم مذہب کلمہ گو صنفِ نازک کو مسل کر اپنی مردانگی پر فخر کر لینا چاہیے۔

کل مورخہ 27 جون 2012ء پر ڈان نیوز پر جسم فروش عورتوں کے انٹرویو لائیو دکھائے گئے۔ پروگرام کا عنوان تھا۔ جسم فروشی شوق یا مجبوری۔ اس طرح کے پروگرام آئے روز دیگر چینلوں پر بھی نشر ہوتے رہتے ہیں۔ ان پروگرام کو دیکھ کر ایسا لگتا ہے کہ پاکستانی نجی چینل گھروں میں بیٹھی غریب خواتین کو جسم فروشی کا راستہ دکھا رہے ہیں۔ آخر جسم فروش عورتوں کے انٹرویو اتنے ضروری کیوں ہیں کہ آئے روز کوئی نہ کوئی چینل ان عورتوں کو مظلوم بنا کر پیش کررہا ہے؟ اسلام میں زناء کی سزا شادی شدہ ہونے کی صورت میں سنگسار کرنا جبکہ غیر شادی شدہ ہونے کی صورت میں 100 کوڑے ہیں۔ ان پروگراموں میں خواتین کھلے عام یہ اقرار کرتی ہیں کہ وہ جسم فروشی (زناء) کرتی رہی ہیں۔ کروڑوں لوگ ان پروگرام کو دیکھ رہے ہوتے ہیں۔ جب کوئی بھی مرد و عورت زناء کا اقرار کرلے تو اس پر اسلامی قوانین کے مطابق حد جاری ہو جاتی ہے۔ اور اسلامی قوانین کے تحت جسم فروشی (زناء) کی سزا وہی ہے جو اوپر تحریر کردی گئی ہے۔ ایسے ممالک جہاں اسلامی قوانین نافذ ہیں۔ وہاں جب کوئی جوڑا باہمی رضا مندی سے زناء کرتا ہے اور پکڑا جاتا ہے تو سزا کے خوف سے عموماً خواتین یہ بیان دے دیتی ہیں کہ ہمارے ساتھ زبردستی زناء کیا گیا ہے۔ ہماری رضا اس میں شامل نہیں تھی۔ اس بیان کے بعدمذکورہ خاتون پر حد جاری نہیں کی جاتی۔ بے شک اس نے اپنی مرضی سے ہی زناء کیوں نہ کیا ہو۔ اسلام میں زناء کی سزا دینے کے لئے کم از کم تین متقی، پرہیزگار گواہوں کا ہونا بھی ضروری ہے۔ اور وہ زناء کرنے والے جوڑے کو اس حالت میں دیکھیں کہ جیسے سوئی میں دھاگہ ڈالا گیا ہو۔ یہ بہت سخت شرط ہے۔ اس کو پورا کرنا یقیناًبہت مشکل ہے۔ تاہم پاکستان کے نجی چینلوں پر جسم فروش خواتین کھلے عام زناء کرنے کا اقرار بھی کررہی ہیں۔ اور ایسی خواتین کو مظلوم بنا کر پیش کیا جا رہا ہے۔ جو کہ یقیناًلمحہ فکریہ ہے۔ اس مسئلے میں پاکستان کے مذہبی لوگوں نے بھی خاموشی اختیار کررکھی ہے۔

Sex sells on the Pakistani Media. Sensational stories on sex crimes sell even better.

Sex sells. Sensational stories on sex crimes sell even better. And in the gang-rape case of Uzma Ayub, the Pakistani media seems to have truly set up shop.

The 17-year-old victim has been hounded by journalists from her house to her hospital bed, narrating her experiences of abduction and gang-rape to reporters and millions of viewers across the globe – again and again.

What the family first saw as a means of getting justice, has come back to bite them. “No reporter has ever sought permission to enter our house. It is disgraceful,” said her 18-year-old brother Zafran, who was too disconcerted by journalists to comment any further.

Now Zafran handles the media, juggling consistent calls from reporters between his newfound family responsibilities and studies.

Television channels were most intrusive the day Uzma gave birth to her child. Almost all news channels showed images of the mother and the newborn girl. But what was most atrocious was when hours after the delivery, a reporter from ARY News managed to get inside the hospital
room and asked the rape victim how she felt about her child being taken away by an NGO, if Uzma was sure the baby belonged to her and whether she was happy about her birth.

In a frail voice, the 17-year-old mother, lying on a bed with a veil on her face and the newborn next to her, answered all questions live on national television.

Reporter Shazia Nasir sees the January 20 interview as part of the game. “It is completely unethical to ask such questions, but there is too much pressure on reporters to get the story. If I would not have done it, Express News or GEO would have.”

The excessive media coverage has made the victim an object of judgement. In the case of Uzma Ayub, the victim has been blamed since the beginning.

One wonders why there are different rules for victims and the accused. If the media names rape victims and shows their pictures, they should do the same for the accused. Giving intimate details about rape victims only allows people to discuss her further.

While some feminist thinkers and legal experts believe it is a victim’s discretion to be identified, it is not fair to put people in the limelight without making them understand the consequences of doing so. People are not really aware of what it means to expose their identity and need to be trained to deal with reporters. It is not fair to throw a person in front of the media just because it
makes a good story.

The way Uzma Ayub’s case was reported gave the story a different  twist, starting another blame-game. When it comes to the ‘breaking news’ bandwagon, nobody gives two hoots about anything. All television channels need to sit together and work out a way to control such reporting.

It is both unethical and illegal to identify rape victims in the media. One of the fundamental rights provided by the Constitution is the right to privacy. As the Fourth Estate, the media
must respect the Constitution.

Journalists need to understand that it causes “immeasurable psychological trauma” to a victim when she sees her face across television channels and newspapers.

There are also trickle-down effects of irresponsible reporting. Many rape victims withdraw their cases if they are too pressurised by the media and NGOs.

Veena Controversy is Pre-arranged to Give Her Publicity

A furor has erupted in India and Pakistan involving a men’s magazine, a seemingly nude Pakistani actress and a tattoo of the initials of ISI on her arm. Many are of the opinion that it is all a farce on Veena’s part to give her publicity and on the magazine’s part to boast up the sales; they say that all that we are witnessing like exchange of legal notices and statements in the media are stage managed for this very purpose.

The uproar follows the release of FHM India’s December issue, which features screen star Veena Malik appearing to pose naked on its cover. If that’s not shocking enough for traditional Indians and Pakistanis, images inside show her holding what looks like a grenade and bearing the tattooed letters “ISI”.

But the actress claims the images were doctored and her agreement with the magazine was thus violated. Somewhat bizarrely, considering the picture sprawled across the cover, Malik insisted she never even posed naked for the magazine.

“If I had posed nude for the magazine, I would be the first to admit it,” CNN reports she said. “But I didn’t agree to this and they are wrong. I did not go for this, and I am deeply shocked and depressed about what has happened.”

Malik’s lawyer, Ayaz Bilawala, told the BBC that his client will sue FHM India and has asked it to withdraw all copies from newsstands. He has sent a legal notice to the magazine seeking $1.9 million in damages. Bilawala explained that the agreement required Malik would be shown all the photographs from the shoot prior to public display. He didn’t dispute the ISI tattoo, but pointed out numerous organizations worldwide used the same acronym.

FHM India has reportedly dismissed her objections as “completely and entirely false” and said it has video evidence to show the shoot’s authenticity. The magazine’s editor told the BBC that writing “ISI” on Malik’s arm was his idea, but she was the one to propose writing it in block letters.  The intention was lighthearted, editor Kabeer Sharma noted. “InIndia we joke about this,” he said. “If anything goes wrong… we say the ISI must be behind this.”

Maybe not so coincidentally, Malik – who stoked controversy for her “un-Islamic” behavior inIndia’s version of Big Brother last year – has a new reality TV show launching soon. Perhaps there’s just no such thing as bad publicity for all parties concerned.
Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/12/06/pakistani-actress-claims-fhm-india-doctored-controversial-nude-photos/#ixzz1gP0ZGExk