Pakistan Press Foundation Journalists in the town of Badin in Pakistan's southern Sindh province have been protesting against the police for falsely involving ten journalists in criminal complaints. Three of the journalists have been charged under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). The journalists said that they are being victimized for covering the activities of Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza, a dissident politician and former member of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), the ruling party in Sindh province. Tanveer Arain, President of the Badin Press Club, said that journalists were preforming their duties during a police siege…Read more

Media Rights Agenda Political thugs suspected to be working for Mr. Ayodele Fayose, the governor of Ekiti state in southwest Nigeria, assaulted Mr. Kamarudeen Ogundele, the state correspondent of the dailyPunch newspaper while he was taking pictures of the unfolding political drama in the state. Ogundele was in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, to cover the ongoing political crisis in the state, following attempts by 19 state lawmakers from the All Progressives Congress to impeach the governor and the governor's frantic efforts to frustrate the move. Ogundele was taking photographs of women praying…Read more

WAN/IFRA The Golden Pen of Freedom, the annual press freedom award of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), has been dedicated in 2015 to all Journalists Killed in the Line of Duty. “Since 1992, more than 1,100 journalists have been killed just because they brought the truth to light or manifested their points of view,” said World Editors Forum President, Marcelo Rech, in dedicating the award during the opening ceremony of the 67th World News Media Congress, 22nd World Editors Forum and 25th World Advertising Forum in Washington D.C. “The…Read more

Pakistan Press Foundation The Special Security Unit (SSU) of the police beat up journalists, reporters, photographers and cameramen while they were performing their professional duty outside the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Saturday, 23 May 2015. The media personnel were covering the appearance of former home minister Sindh Dr Zulfiqar Mirza at the SHC for his bail application when they were subjected to violence. Police used wooden staffs to beat them and also damaged their equipment. Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Rana Azeem and Secretary-General Mohammad Amin Yousuf condemned the police…Read more

Media Institute of Southern Africa It is public record that the Patriotic Front (PF) government promised immediate enactment of the Access to Information (ATI) legislation as one of its flagship activities for further liberalisation of the media environment once elected into office in 2011. This was widely received as a move that would transform Zambia into a truly participatory governance system that enables its citizens to make informed decisions, which – in-turn – impact and add value to the process of development. The highly anticipated presentation of the ATI bill has stalled on…Read more

International Press Institute The International Press Institute (IPI) today urged lawmakers in Trinidad and Tobago to take into account concerns by media stakeholders over a proposed cybercrime law. The country's Parliament is preparing for a third reading on a wide-ranging online crimes bill that targets, among other things, unauthorised data access, cyber-bullying and identity fraud. However, media groups, including the Trinidad and Tobago Publishers and Broadcasters Association (TTPBA) have raised alarm over the bill's potential to chill investigative journalism in the twin-island Caribbean state. At issue are two clauses, Arts. 9 and 13, intended…Read more

International Federation of Journalists The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) express deep concern at a series of incidents leading to the forced displacement of a Peshawar-based journalist, Rasool Dawar. Dawar, a special correspondent for Geo TV hailing from North Waziristan, left Peshawar in the last week stating that he felt insecure in the region, where he has been twice detained for hours under 'extremely torturous conditions' by the security agencies. In a letter to Geo TV's CEO and concerned government and non-government agencies,…Read more