Karachi: The APNS strongly condemns the continued spate of violence against media men by the law enforcing agencies, including implicating journalists in false cases, states a press release of the All-Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), issued on Tuesday.
The executive committee at its meeting held here expressed outrage against the recent acts of violence against journalists at Rahimhyar Khan and Lahore by the police authorities. It also condemned registration of an FIR in triple murder case against Shakil Anjum, reporter of the daily, “The News International”, Rawalpindi, which appears a vengeance against the reporter for his stories exposing crime and highlighting the possible involvement of a
Police Inspector already under
investigation.
The APNS appealed to the prime minister and the minister of Information and Broadcasting to take note of the continued harassment of media men and attacks on the freedom of the press.
The executive committee also noted with concern the grant and allotment of plots to the journalists by different provincial governments on the basis of membership of press clubs alone whereas certain genuine working journalists were being ignored. It suggested that a mechanism for such allotments be evolved wherein the managements of newspapers be approached to nominate the deserving persons for such allotments.
The committee through a special resolution condoled the sad and sudden death of Ikramullah Khan of Daily Baakhabar, Quetta, and offered Fateha for the departed soul.
The members considered the reports of provincial committees of Balochistan, NWFP, Sindh, Punjab, and the Federal Capital Committee and granted associate membership to the following publications.
Daily Katehra, Peshawar; Weekly Rawish, Islamabad; Daily Baakhabar Quetta; Daily Meezan, Quetta; Daily Tameer-e-Balochistan, Quetta; Daily Frontier Post, Quetta; Daily Mashriq, Evening Special, Quetta; Monthly Sahar, Quetta; Daily Sobh, Karachi; Monthly Subh-e-Nau, Karachi; Daily Economic Times, Islamabad; Daily Mera Pak Watan, Islamabad; Daily The Post, Lahore; Daily Saadat, Monthly Sad Rang, Lahore; and Daily Pakistan, Multan.
The executive committee also considered applications from advertising agencies and granted provisional accreditation to M/S Media Network, Lahore, granted associate status to M/S Fifth Element (Pvt) Ltd, Karachi, confirmed accreditation of M/S M Communications, Karachi and approved conversion from associate status to provincial accreditation of M/S Media Line Advertising Karachi. The executive committee approved registration of M/S T Media / WPP Marketing Communications (Pvt) Ltd Karachi.
The meeting was chaired by Shakil-ur-Rehman, President, and attended by Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami, Vice President; Inquilab Matri, Vice-President; Anwar Farooqui, Finance Secretary; Mumtaz A Tahir (Daily Aftab); Faisal Shajehan (Daily Ausaf); Waseem Ahmed (Daily Awam, Quetta); Dr Jabbar Khattak (Daily Awami Awaz); Asif A Zuberi (D/Business Recorder); Abdul Rashid Ghazi (D/Business Report); Syed Faseih Iqbal (D/Balochistan Times); Fauzia Shaheen (M/Dastak); Najamuddin Sheikh (D/Deyanat); Ali Hassan (D/Dawn); Qudsia K Khan, (D/Financial Post); Ms Shehela Abbasi, (D.Ibrat); Sharif Farooq, Daily/Jihad; Syed Sajjad Hussain Shah (D/Khainat, Khi); Javed Mehr Shamsi, (D/ Kaleem); Muhammad Aslam Kazi, (D/ Kawish); Zia Shahid, (D/Khabrain); Aamir Mahmood (M/Kiran); Adeeb Javedani (M/Moon Digest); Syed Sajjad Bokhari (D/Musawat); Arif Nizami (D.Nawa-i-Waqt/The Nation); Mushtaq Ahmed Qureshi (M/Naey Ufaq); S M Munir Jillani (D/Paigham); Ilyas Shakir (D/Qaumi Akhbar); Waqar Yousuf Azeemi (M/Roohani Digest); Khushnood Ali Khan (D/Sahafat); Jamil Athar (D/Tijarat, Sargoodha); and Pir Sufaid Shah Hamdard, (D/Wahdat).
Syed Samad Ali of Daily Jang and Mian Akbar Ali of Daily Khabrain attended the meeting as special observers.
