Respected Parliamentarian, “The Press and the Nation rise and fall together” is the proverb that best describe the situation being confronted by the country and its most vibrant and vital institution- the media. I am writing this to you at a very important and critical juncture of our history where the state of Pakistan is facing precarious situation and being considered as one of the most dangerous country for journalists. The journalist’s fraternity has rendered a lot of sacrifices including the ultimate sacrifice of over 110 media workers in the line of duty. The unsung heroes of journalist fraternity despite numerous odds are continuing with their struggle to uphold the fundamental right to know and dissemination of information in most dangerous situations. Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has raised the matter with the government and the Media Houses for the safety of journalists and award of compensation to the heirs of martyred journalists but to no avail, so far. The PFUJ’s Federal Executive Committee at its meeting in Quetta has decided to present the following five-point charter of demand to government and the owner of the Media Houses for safety and better working conditions for journalists; 1. Government and Media House shall made definite and universally recognized arrangements to get life insurance for the media workers across Pakistan 2. The National Assembly and all the Provincial Assemblies shall evolve a comprehensive policy for grant of compensation to the families of media workers martyred or rendered handicapped in an act of violence or terrorism 3. Government shall announce a comprehensive security plan for all the Media Houses and Press Clubs across Pakistan 4. Special Tribunals shall be set up at the federal and provincial level for early disposal of cases of 110 martyred media workers in acts of violence and terrorism 5. Federal Government shall immediately announce the constitution of 8th Wage Award Commission for journalists and appoint Chairman Implementation Tribunal for Newspaper Employees for the disposal of all cases pertaining to the complete implementation of 7th Wage Award PFUJ would appreciate if the government all the above-stated demands by 20th of March 2014 as it would keep the doors open for dialogue with the government. However, if the governments fail to accept any of the five demand, PFUJ would have no option but to exercise its right to protest for the acceptance of these demands. PFUJ would appreciate if the parliamentarians and the member of provincial assemblies join the sit-in planned for March 20 in front of parliament in Islamabad and in front of all the provincial assemblies in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta. We are confident that the parliamentarians belonging to either side of the political divide would support us inside and outside the parliament by keeping up their past tradition to help the journalist fraternity met their justified demands. Yours Sincerely Muahmmad Afzal Butt President Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 05:29:26 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015