LAHORE: Standing Committee of Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) in meeting presided over by President Kazim Khan expressed regret regarding current government policies related to media as continuation of previous government. In this regard, declaration issued by CPNE said that results of restricting freedom of press have been found in form of fall of Dhaka in past, so to save country from any further tragedy, facts and history should be based on Constitution.

Expressing deep concern over situation of print media industry on brink of closure due to financial crisis facing country, in resolution, federal and provincial governments asked federal and provincial governments to pay dues for official advertisements of newspapers, advertising agencies. Immediate recovery of arrears and making process of distribution of official advertisements fair and transparent. In meeting situation of media organisations and freedom of expression, economic conditions of print media and organisational issues were discussed. Meeting condemned black laws imposed on media.

Participants said that despite loud claims of democracy and all assurances of providing right to freedom of expression, ruling and opposition parties seem to be on same path in their tenure of power in matter of depriving freedom of press. They demanded immediate abolition of PICA and other anti-journalism laws from present government. Thhe reiterated determination to protect basic right of people to freedom of opinion by resisting every test in field of access to information and information for people. 

Concern was also expressed over four hundred percent increase in rates of foreign delivery of newspapers and magazines by postal department. Postal department should withdraw this increase immediately. New membership applications in meeting were decidedfor daily Karachi 21 Karachi, daily Sindh Umar Karachi, monthly newspaper Zawiya Nigham Karachi, daily newspaper Aaj Sobh Peshawar, daily newspaper Awaz Sobh Peshawar, daily newspaper 92 News Peshawar, daily newspaper Shamal Swat, daily newspaper Azmat Lahore, Associate membership to editors of publications of Daily Dafs Lahore, Daily Hasb Zoq Lahore, Daily Ibadat Rahim Yar Khan, Daily Akhtar Rai Bahawalpur, Daily Tehreep Bahawalpur, Daily Masharat Kasur, Daily Qaboos Multan, Daily Sultanate Gujranwala and Daily Zarb Ahan Faisalabad. It was decided to give senior Vice President Ayaz Khan, Secretary General Aamir Mehmood, Vice Presidents Dr. Jabbar Khattak, Irshad Ahmed Arif, Arif Baloch, Finance Secretary Ghulam Nabi Chandio, Information Secretary Dr. Zubair Mehmood, Joint Secretaries Zia Tanuli, Anwar Sajdi, Yahya Khan Saduzai, senior members were present in meeting.

Ejaz-ul-Haq, Sardar Khan Niazi, Jameel Athar Qazi, Hamid Hussain Abdi, Abdul Khaliq Ali, Tanvir Shaukat, Abdul Rehman Mangrio, Zulfiqar Ahmed Rahat, Muhammad Akmal Chauhan, Bashir Ahmed Khan, Bashir Ahmed Memon, Ahmed Shafiq, Manza Saham, Waqas Tariq Farooq, Mahmood Alam Khalid, Syed Farzand Ali, Muhammad Owais Razi, Muhammad Tahir, Sher Muhammad Khawar, Nadeem Basra and Sajjad Abbasi also participated.

Published in The Daily National Courier, December, 21 2022

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