The Toronto Chapter of Baloch Human rights council of Canada held an emergency meeting on August 18, 2009 in Toronto against the constant harassment and intimidation of Baloch Journalist by Pakistani Army and its spies agencies. BHRC-Canada expressed its deep concern over the deteriorating situation for press freedom in Balochistan Pakistan.
Over the last past few months, civil unrest has been mounting in Balochistan, where citizens have been protesting against the largest and most brutal Army Operation by Pakistan Army against the democratic and Secular forces in Balochistan.
Recently, Mr Malik Siraj Akbar, the bureau chief of Daily Times is threatened by a group of Pakistani journalist cum ISI agents against his article, “A Home Grown Conflict”, which was published in the Times of India on August 11, 2009. In this article he had argued that the movement in Balochistan is an indigenous one without the help of India. This group of people, insist that Mr Malik Siraj Akbar had committed “sedition” and is an “Indian agent”. This group is demanding to the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) for condemnation of the article and legal action against Mr Malik Siraj Akbar.
In a different event on August 18 2009, the Daily News paper ASAP stopped its publication, and shut down its offices in Quetta and Turbat due to constant intimidation and harassment of journalist and visitors inside the news paper office by Pakistan Army.
Previously, on February 23, 2009 the editor in chief of ASAP newspaper Mr Jan Mohammad Dashti was attacked by ISI sponsered Lashker-e-Jhangvi (a religeous terrorist organizaion) but fortunately, Mr. Dhasti survived the attack.
Continuing with the constant manipulation the government banned the official advertisements of Daily Asaap.
In the wake of “impossible working circumstances”, Asaap wrote the following “Media Watch” on the front page to announce its closure:
“With absolute pain and sorrow, we wish to inform the respected readers of Asaap and the Baloch people that our office in Quetta has been under siege by the Frontier Corps (FC) and security forces for the past two weeks. These forces were busy in humiliating every visitor and staff member who came to our office. Asaap is the only newspaper [in Pakistan] where security forces have been deployed. These forces are engaged in regular search and harassment of staff members and visitors.
At such a situation, Daily Asaap is left with two options either to temporarily or permanently shut its publication or to prepare for clashes between the security forces and the staff members of the newspaper. For Asaap, the personal safety of all its staff members, majority of whom are young people, is extremely important. We want these young staff members to remain healthy and respected. We are of the opinion that the lives of these staff members would be further jeopardized in case of uninterrupted publication of Asaap. They face serious threats to their lives. There is the great possibility of physically harming the staff members of this newspaper, implicating them in false cases and applying various other harassment tactics against them.
Hence, Asaap has no options left but to decide to shut its publication in order to ensure the safety of its own workers. Therefore, the Asaap management has decided that the newspaper will not be published from Quetta and Turbat from tomorrow and the paper will not be delivered to our valued readers tomorrow morning.”
BHRC-Canada seriously believe that there is a sustained and systematic campaign of harassment against Baloch journalists; and the blunt force and range of oppressive tactics are being applied to silence the voices of truth in Balochistan.”
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