On Friday, 20th June 2014, Pakistan Electronic Media Regularity Authority (PEMRA) ordered ‘ARY News’ off the air for 15 days, with an imposed levy of Rs. 10 million on ARY News. The media ‘licencing authority’ which has almost become the ‘media silencing authority’ also banned ‘Khara Sach’ programme aired on ARY News and its presenter Mubasher Lucman. It is the latest action of Nawaz government in an organised campaign of pestering and bullying ARY network on account of its punchy programming and an often populist tone. The decision came at a time when under Nawaz Government, Pakistan is ranked 158 out of 173 in the 2013-14 Press Freedom Index.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hinted on suspension of ARY News in one of his speech few hours before the decision became public. The ban on ARY news came on the day when another media outlet ‘GEO’ completed its 15 days ban and restored on cable and satellite. There are wider suppositions that ARY’s license suspended on orders of PM Nawaz Sharif. The decision to ban Mubashar Lucman from hosting popular programme ‘Khara Sach’ made a mockery of the Supreme Court’s recent decision of lifting ban from Mubashir Luqman. Disrespecting Judiciary is nothing new for Nawaz government as on November 28, 1997, it was during the second tenure of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that an boisterous mob of hundreds of the Nawaz Leaguists and leaders had breached the security cordon around the Supreme Court building shortly after Nawaz Sharif had appeared before the then Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah in a contempt of court case.
Since coming back to power again, the Nawaz government has continued the trend of intermittently interfering with media channels by temporarily disrupting or pulling off the air certain television stations or programmes. The suspension of ARY news has occurred during the period of political squabbling and tension, when a revolution is about to knock the door of the Nation.
Pakistan has writhed many prickly leaders, almost all of whom, whether democratically elected or self-appointed, have used the available state machinery to try to control the media. But the Nawaz administration always does so with particular fanaticism and efficacy. Nawaz government intensifies the pressure on independent journalists like Mubashar Luqman, coupling more slanting strategies of silencing the media with increasingly aggressive public shows of vengeance.
One must not be surprised by such acts of Nawaz government as Nawaz is a disciple of Pakistan’s military dictator, Gen. Zia ul-Haq. General Zia viciously stifled media, imposed strict censorship controls and jailed media men who tried to avow their independence during his rule. Many of the country’s senior journalists made great professional sacrifices during the Zia years, and guarded their freedom.
During its previous rule from 1997 to 1999, Sharif Government attempted to silence several critics, and to influence directly the substance of media reporting. In May, 1999 a crackdown on the press began. Prominent journalist Najam Sethi, was arrested and apprehended on May 8. Sethi allegedly had assisted a British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reporting team that was investigating corruption within the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s family. Other journalists were also targeted; many of whom also had assisted the BBC documentary team that was investigating corruption within the Sharif family. On 4 May, 1999 commentator Hussain Haqqani was detained. A vocal detractor of the Nawaz, Haqqani highlighted wrongdoings by government officials in his writings, and assisted the BBC documentary team investigating corruption. Idrees Bakhtiar, the BBC’s correspondent in Karachi, was questioned by police and subjected to a warrantless search of his home. Mehmood Ahmed Khan Lodhi, a journalist, was questioned by police authorities. A number of journalists–including Ejaz Haider Bokhari of the Friday Times, Imtiaz Alam of the News, and Dawn Islamabad bureau chief Mohammed Ziauddin–were subjected to warnings from police or anonymous sources regarding their criticism of government policies.
Under the current civil dictatorship regime, most of the Pakistani institutions have been brought under Sharif’s personal control. The media and channels like ARY News became one of the few remaining checks on his power. By banning freedom of expression Sharif wants to cast aside virtually every democratic check on his power. The survival of media channels like ARY News is crucial for Pakistani Public considering the corruption. Given a complacent parliament, an often politically compromised judiciary, the ARY news has been the forum where actual debate on matters of national interest took place. Assertive T.V talk shows like ‘Khara Sach’ has become the only platform for substantive criticism of government policies.
Although PEMRA was originally intended to be a distinct body under supervision of the cabinet, it was transferred to fall under the purview of the Information Ministry, thus weakening its independence from government. Nawaz government wants to use PEMRA as institutional form of control of “press advice system”. In which government officials will constantly tell Pakistani news outlets and editors how to behave, what to publish and what to broadcast. The system was refined in the late 1970s, under General Zia. While it was supposed to disappear with Pakistan’s return to democracy, its basic mechanisms seem to have been preserved by Nawaz Sharif three decade later. It appears that Sharif’s government wants to use the press advice system extensively. Sharif Government’s scrimmage with Pakistani media outlets, has given a tremendous impetus to the struggle of freedom of expression and could prove to be a turning point for the media in Pakistan. Freedom of expression in Pakistan has gnarled many storms, and should be expected to outlive this regime of civil dictatorship. But the journalists like Mubashar Lucman will continue to be vulnerable to political persecution for as long as the democratic foundations of the state remain weak.
