PRINT MEDIA:
DEATH OF A JOURNALIST AND A MAINSTREAM DAILY
Between May 2000 and May 2001, the military government made no overt
moves to crack down on its critics in the press. However, Pakistani journalists
were prone to self-censorship given that they work without constitutional
protections or democratic safeguards.
The government headed by military ruler General Pervez Musharraf sought
to create an impression of benign rule during this period. In part, this
amounted to conscientiously avoid the bare-knuckle tactics that former
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif used to control the press.
Despite this, though, the veneer of patience by General Musharraf with
his critics seemed to be wearing thin toward the end of 2000 and some
of Pakistan's leading journalists sounded out warnings that a crackdown
could be imminent. While there was a fair bit of lively debate on the
military government's policies in the English language press, political
coverage in the mass circulation vernacular media, especially Urdu, tended
to be far more tame.
As aptly pointed out by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), self-censorship
continued in all media, with journalists keenly aware that they work without
constitutional protections or democratic safeguards. Pakistan's constitution
has been suspended since October 1999 when army chief General Musharraf
assumed power in a bloodless coup. The regime undermined judicial independence
last year when Musharraf ordered senior judges to swear a loyalty oath
affirming the declaration of a national emergency and promising not to
challenge decisions made by him. Fifteen judges, including Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, refused to take this oath
and were removed from office.
There was sporadic violence against journalists throughout the period
in contention. The most extreme case was the murder of Sufi Mohammad Khan,
a reporter for the Urdu-language daily Ummat. He was killed on 2 May 2000
in a small town in the southern province of Sindh, in reprisal for stories
he had written on drug trafficking and prostitution in the region.
Another alarming attack was the brutal abduction and beating of Shakil
Shaikh, chief reporter for the national English-language daily The News
in Islamabad.
Around midday on 28 March 2001, five unidentified men in a jeep forced
Shaikh's car to a stop on the Kashmir Highway, less than a mile from the
main commercial center of Islamabad. The men forced him into their jeep
and drove him to a deserted area on the outskirts of the city. Shaikh
blindfolded and with his hands bound by rope, was then beaten by his captors
for more than three hours. The assailants also kicked Sheikh, stomped
on his body, and struck him on the head with the butt of an AK-47. "You
write too much. Now you will not write anymore," Sheikh's assailants
said repeatedly as they beat him. They also threatened to harm his parents,
wife, and children. After several hours, the men abandoned Sheikh and
drove off. He eventually managed to untie himself and found that his car
had been left for him nearby.
Sheikh drove back to his home in Islamabad, but was then taken by ambulance
to a prestigious local hospital, where he was admitted. Colleagues who
saw him that evening said that, in addition to his physical injuries,
he suffered from severe emotional trauma.
Sources at The News said the precise motive for the attack remained unclear,
as Sheikh reports on a number of political and military issues. The journalist
told colleagues that he was not able to identify his captors.
An unfortunate event in the period under discussion was the closure of
the Peshawar-based The Frontier Post daily for publication of a blasphemous
letter.
Even the sister publication of the paper, the Urdu-language Maidan, which
had nothing to do with the incident, was forced to shut down. Neither
has resumed publication.
The one-man tribunal of Justice Qaim Jan Khan of the Peshawar High Court,
constituted by the government, held four staff members of The Frontier
Post responsible for publication of the blasphemous letter, which appeared
in the daily.
The judicial tribunal, set up by the North West Frontier Province government
following the federal government's instructions, said the incident took
place "due to sheer negligence, rather personal negligence,"
of the newspaper's managing editor, news editor, sub-editor and composer.
The publication of the blasphemous letter in the daily on 29 January
2001 led to the sealing of the newspaper's offices and printing press.
Protesters mostly belonging to religious groups set the daily's printing
press on fire.
Seven staffers of The Frontier Post were booked under Section 295 C,
also called Blasphemy Law, and other sections such as 295 A and B/505
of the Pakistan Penal Code and 16, Maintenance of Public Order.
Five of them - news editor Aftab Ahmad, chief reporter Imtiaz Hussain,
features writer Kazi Ghulam Sarwar, sub-editor Munawar Mohsin and Wajeehul
Hasan, in charge of the computing section - were arrested by the police.
All except Mohsin have seen been released on bail. The authorities failed
to arrest the paper's managing editor, Mahmood Afridi, and joint editor
Jawed Nazir. While exonerating Hussain, Sarwar and Nazir, the tribunal
has held Afridi, Ahmad and Mohsin responsible for publication of the letter,
which was blasphemous and derogatory to Holy Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).
In its 17-page report, the tribunal made special mention of the crippled
financial position of The Frontier Post, plus lack of professionalism
and efficiency at the daily. Quoting some of the 24 witnesses who appeared
before it, the tribunal pointed out that there was mismanagement at the
newspaper and a single individual had to perform the duties of five to
six persons. In addition, it accused the newspaper's management of being
negligent.
The tribunal's three terms of reference were to probe the circumstances
under which the blasphemous letter was published, find out the motive
and suggest ways and means to prevent such sacrilegious acts by the print
media in the name of press freedom in the future. Apart from negligence
on the part of some of the newspaper's staffers, the tribunal has not
mentioned any motive for publication of the blasphemous letter. The tribunal,
however, recommended improved working conditions for journalists through
implementation of the Seventh Wage Board Award and formation of the Press
Council as some of the necessary steps so that newspapers could be managed
professionally and recurrence of such incidents could be avoided.
The management of the newspaper terms the entire episode a conspiracy
as the said e-mail is missing from its computer's mailbox. The owner cum
chief editor of The Frontier Post Rehmat Shah Afridi continues to languish
behind the bars since April 1998 on charges of drugs and the prosecution
has failed to conclude the case after three years.
On Feb. 7 2001 the Peshawar police raided the bureau office of the daily
Jasarat that had published Urdu translation of the blasphemous letter
that cost The Frontier Post its' life. However, the deliberate publication
of the translated letter by daily Jasarat helped cool down the angered
clergy as it hesitated to attack its' own right-wing paper i.e. daily
Jasarat.
On 18 May 2000, mobs angered by the murder of a prominent Sunni Muslim
scholar attacked and burnt the offices of the daily Business Recorder
in Karachi, the capital of Sindh Province and Pakistan's commercial hub.
Rioters ransacked the newspaper's offices and set fire to the building.
No one was killed in the attack, but the newspaper suffered extensive
property damage and was temporarily unable to publish.
A large number of policemen entered the Lahore Press Club on 10 July
2000, while Omer Sailya president of the Small Traders Association was
addressing a press conference criticizing the governments tax policies.
The police officers beat journalists who tried to stop them from entering
the building.
In another serious incident, on 16 July 2000, unidentified gunmen in
Hyderabad shot another Ummat reporter, Abdul Hafeez Abid. Abid, a veteran
journalist, survived despite bullet wounds to his stomach and neck.
On 3 September 2000, Wahid Bux Nipi Turk, a journalist of a local Sindhi
newspaper told a press conference at the Karachi Press Club that he had
been receiving death threats by individual who had encroached upon government
land. Turk said ever since he reported on the land encroachment of a graveyard
in Malir area, the land grabbers had started threatening him.
The closest the military regime came to an overt attack on the press
was a four-hour inspection of the Karachi headquarters of the Dawn Group
of Newspapers, which publishes some of Pakistan's most influential and
respected publications, including the English-language daily Dawn. On
27 September 2000, an army monitoring team arrived at the newspaper offices
to investigate the company's electrical usage. Soldiers demanded access
to all parts of the building, including the offices of editors and reporters.
The army inspection team refused to allow its personnel to adhere to security
identification procedures, which have been enforced in Dawn's office since
the bomb blasts over a year ago. The inspection followed a series of complaints
by senior officials about Dawn's political coverage. Journalists at the
paper saw it as a punitive raid.
On 12 September 2000, Dawn had published an article entitled "Free
Press: Is Musharraf Having Second Thoughts?" In the article, senior
correspondent Shaheen Sehbai (currently Group Editor of The News) noted
that the chief executive, on a recent visit to the United States, had
exhibited a "growing impatience with the Pakistani press...[complaining
that] it was irresponsible, corrupt, unpatriotic at times, and not pursuing
healthy journalism."
In mid-October, Musharraf suggested drafting legislation to punish those
who make "anti-state comments." The proposal followed a controversial
speech in London by the leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM),
a dissident regional party, and appeared intended to target opposition
leaders lobbying for support from overseas. But some journalists worried
that such legislation would inevitably be used against the press. These
fears seemed reasonable, since Pakistan already has strict laws against
sedition that have been used to punish journalists writing about politically
sensitive subjects.
On 6 November 2000, the Karachi advertising office of the national Urdu-language
daily Nawa-e-Waqt was hit by a bomb attack. Three of the paper's employees
died from injuries sustained in the blast: Najmul Hasan Zaidi, the newspaper's
advertising manager; Ziaul Haq, assistant circulation manager; and Sajid
Mehmood, a computer operator. After the odd episode the government formed
a Task force to suggest measures to ensure the security of newspaper offices.
On 14 November 2000 a photographer of daily Dawn was detained by the
law enforcing agencies and let him off only after he surrendered his camera
roll. The photographer was snapping traffic jam.
Legal protections are tenuous at best in most of the country, but journalists
are especially vulnerable in Pakistan's border regions. Local journalists
reporting from the North West Frontier Province, which borders Afghanistan,
said they were regularly harassed and threatened for reporting critically
on the policies of that country's ruling Taliban movement.
These reporters feared publicizing their cases because the Pakistani
military maintains close links with the Taliban, and because local police
and security agents have also been hostile to the press. Security concerns
intensified after the 1 June 2000 shooting of Mohammad Enam Wak, author
of a book entitled "Afghanistan Federalism," in which he debated
the formation of a state on the basis of ethnic identity. Unidentified
gunmen shot Wak twice in his right arm and once in his abdomen. The attack
occurred one month after the book's publication.
Journalists were also vulnerable to arbitrary arrest and harassment in
the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), where local authorities
exercise unchecked power and normal Pakistani law does not apply. On 23
May 2000 the authorities in Kurram Agency issued arrest warrant against
Iqbal Hussain correspondent of Daily Jang and The News. When the journalist
went into hiding, his brother Ajmal Hussain, also a journalist associated
with daily Sahafat was arrested. On 6 June his father was also detained
for four days. The authorities wanted to teach a lesson to journalists
exposing their corruption they openly warned them to refrain from damaging
reportage. Ahmed Jan Siddiqui correspondent of daily Ausaf violated this
directive and continued to write stories exposing corruption within the
local civil administration. He was arrested on 7 June 2000.
Similarly, the uncertain political status of the Northern Areas, adjacent
to the disputed territory of Kashmir, has created problems for journalists.
On 17 October 2000, the deputy commissioner of Skardu banned K-2, one
of four major weekly newspapers covering the region, for reporting on
a protest demonstration by activists who demanded more rights for the
local population. The weekly was accused of publishing objectionable material
promoting anti-Pakistan feelings. On November 2, 2000 the Gilgit (Northern
Areas) police arrested about two dozen journalists for protesting against
the cancellation of declaration of weekly K-2.
On December 1, 2000 a Lahore based English daily The Sun suspended its
publication without giving any formal notice to its employees/workers.
The Sun could not survive owing to financial constraints. Similar constraints
were expressed by a Lahore based Urdu daily Wifaaq, which has been appearing
regularly for 41 years, stated in September 2000 that it would be forced
to close down if the federal and provincial information departments failed
to clear advertisement dues. However on 20 March 2001 the information
ministry announced to check the growth of "dummy newspapers"
and encourage and support regular newspapers and periodicals through its
revised media list comprised of functional papers for government advertisements.
On December 2, 2000 the interior minister warned the newsmen not to file
follow-up reports about the incident in which the capital police claimed
to have killed an alleged terrorist in an encounter, whereas the independent
investigative reports revealed that the poor victim had property dispute
with an official of the capital police.
On 10 December 2000, five journalists were held in illegal detention
by a military officer near Islamabad airport and forced to stand under
an open sky for three hours. They had gone there to cover the departure
of former premier Nawaz Sharif for a forced exile. The journalists were
Tanveer Shahzad, photographer of The News, Kamran Khan, cameraman of CNBC
in Islamabad, Nasir Khan, photographer of the Associated Press of Pakistan,
Mobarik Virk, City Editor of The Nation Islamabad and Shahid Ahmed, senior
cameramen of PTV News, Islamabad. The army officer threatened the journalists
with serious consequences and told them that taking pictures of army vehicles
was a crime under the Army Act.
On January 29, 2001 the NWFP government forfeited all copies of the November
2000 edition of monthly, "Saut-ul-Haq", Peshawar for containing
objectionable material. On 10 April 2001 the Lahore police baton charged
on journalists who were protesting against the recent attacks on their
colleagues. On April 18, 2001 the assistant commissioner, Bela, Quetta
dislodged newsmen from local press club and locked the premises. The said
official was annoyed with newsmen over reporting of stolen and recovered
vehicles. On 30 April NWFP administration forfeited all copies of book,
"Shaur-e-Farda" (consciousness about tomorrow) on the pretext
that it contained objectionable material.
A unique case
On December 20, 2000, federal minister for education, Zubaida Jilal while
taking serious note of an article written by Tasleema Nasreen, which was
published in Urdu translation of UNESCO's magazine Piami's June 2000 edition,
constituted a high level committee to probe the matter. Which on January
26, 2001 held the former secretary general of Pakistan National Commission
for UNECSO responsible for the publication of the said article. Interestingly
"Piami" is UNESCO's international journal that is published
in various languages and carries centralized contents but authorities
in Pakistan failed to tolerate an article by a controversial writer.
ELECTRONIC MEDIA
PROMISES UNFULFILLED
The electronic media in Pakistan-primarily television and radio-during
the period May 2000 to May 2001 was a case of "more of the same"
in the sense that it was characterized by several promises by the military
government of freeing the air waves for private enterprise by the first
quarter of 2001.
Not much came out of the promises though, which ranged from assurances
of allowing private radio channels and television stations to broadcast
and telecast current affairs programmes including independent news. Instead
the state controlled Pakistan Television launched PTV News on November
3, 2000, the first 24-hour news and current affairs channel of the country.
The channel offers live current affairs programmes, which reflects a degree
of freedom. On April 18, 2001 Radio Pakistan launched its own current
affairs and news channel. General Pervez Musharraf inaugurated it and
interestingly all the employees of radio Pakistan except those needed
to carry on transmission were asked to stay at home when the chief executive
visited the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation's headquarters.
During this period, however, there was plenty of activity that signified
a measured change in official control of information through the various
electronic media.
For one, there was a proliferation of cable channels in the country,
which brought huge segments of Pakistan's population under this accessibility
net, thereby altering the face of information inflow in Pakistan dramatically.
For another, there was a welcome opening up of the government-controlled
television.
State-Run TV Opens Up
The gradual, albeit controlled, opening up of the state television, which
for the first time since the military seized power in October 1999, allowed
diverse political views to be aired on Pakistan Television (PTV), was
a significant development.
The PTV began airing live programmes that covered a broad range of public
interest issues in which experts and people from a cross section of the
professions gave diverse opinions.
These opinions also included a fair bit of criticism of government policies,
something rare on the officially controlled electronic media.
Of special significance was a weekly programme titled "Mukalima"
or "Dialogue." This was a live programme that aired every Friday
evening after national news Khabarnama.
Leaders, including chiefs, of various political parties - both mainstream
and marginal - were invited to speak on such contentious issues as whether
the constitution of the country is relevant, the state of the federation
and provincial autonomy.
Views - which couldn't be diluted or curbed because the programme was
live, thereby giving it credibility - of all kinds came from the politicians,
most of them heavily critical of the military government and its policies
and perceived intentions.
While this may be a good start, given that the grassroots democracy plan
- or devolution plan as it is also called - the role of electronic media
in view of the low rate of literacy at the districts level needs open
recognition and greater freedom and autonomy.
Only private radio and television channels can create the deep penetration
needed by the people to increase awareness about the issues that directly
affect them at the local level on the detailed aspects of the development
needs and priorities.
Cable Explosion
As for the explosion of hundreds of cable channels into Pakistani homes,
dozens of them Indian channels including those dealing with current affairs,
the development wasn't without its share of dramatics and struggles.
In June 2000, a string of religious movements in Pakistan launched a
campaign against cable television operators, which were authorized by
the federal government at the beginning of the year.
To stir up their supporters against what they saw as 'vulgar and obscene'
television programmes, the religious leaders issued a fatwa calling on
all Muslims to "rise up against the devil" represented by cable
operators.
The Pakistani religious movements have the power to impose some of their
points of view on local authorities, alternating political pressure, threats,
demonstrations and acts of sabotage.
So intense was the battle for the right to have cable channels by private
citizens and the religious groups' demands that they close down, that
comical scenes were witnessed.
The administration, fearing a law and order situation because of resentment
by the powerful local religious leaders had sealed the networks of six
cable operators in the Hayatabad township of Peshawar, the provincial
capital.
The private cable networks were closed down for allegedly promoting "obscenity
and immorality" after Governor North West Frontier Province Lt Gen
Mohammad Shafique, who has since resigned, announced his intention to
ban the cable networks while addressing a meeting of religious leaders.
"I order the closure of cable television networks in the province
from today," he was reported as saying in national press.
However, the very next day, after the federal government reportedly expressed
displeasure over the development, the spokesman for the provincial government
clarified that the governor had referred to illegal and pirate networks
and not authorized networks.
The owners of the six networks approached the Peshawar High Court and
maintained that the federal government licenses cable television networks
and the provincial government does not have the authority to suspend their
operations. The court upheld their stance.
All the cable operators were authorized and licensed by the Pakistan
Telecommunication Authority (PTA) in May 2000.
The government is also contemplating whether private television cable
operators are supervised by an autonomous regulatory authority or to continue
them to be controlled by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority.
Cable Media Monopoly?
The classic case of monopolisation of this kind of electronic media seems
to be taking place in Pakistan.
The Jang Group of papers (which includes, among others, Urdu daily Jang
and English daily The News) is currently engaged in a battle to become
Lahore's biggest cable operator after becoming Karachi's leader.
Insiders say that the Jang Group has 101 pseudo firms dealing in cable
operations in its objective to become the country's 'cable king.' It,
however, finds hard obstacles in the shape of former politician Salman
Taseer, whose firm HBFO is Lahore's leader.
In Karachi also, the Jang Group is not very comfortably placed. It is
reportedly locked in a legal battle with its rival group, the Dawn Group
of Publications, to cover as much of the city - Pakistan's largest and
most populous - as possible with cable.
The Cable-TV War
Meanwhile, Pakistan's small-time, fledgling cable operators and foreign
satellite channels are proving ferocious revenue predators for the mammoth
state-owned PTV, the Dawn newspaper reported.
On the quick heels of PTV viewers, advertisers are turning to these emerging
monopolists of the mini-screen as the state-run viewership steadily dwindles,
it said, adding that surveys establish beyond doubt the flight of viewership
from all the three PTV channels.
Interestingly, most of the private cable operators do not relay PTV and
PTV-3 channels, carrying only the satellite-based PTV World signal. According
to independent estimates, nearly 55 per cent urban viewers have migrated
to the cable networks.
Freer Electronic Media
At the beginning of the year 2001, there was increasing evidence that
the military government was becoming aware of the need to open up the
electronic as well as other forms of the media.
Military ruler General Pervez Musharraf on 16 January 2001 called for
facilitating free flow of information and directed the Ministry of Information
and Media Development to re-orientate its role from that of a regulator
to a facilitator.
"The ministry should work to create an environment favourable for
the development of print and electronic media in the country," Dawn
newspaper quoted him as saying while reviewing recommendations of task
forces on the role and performance of the ministry, its attached departments
and corporations.
However, instead of stressing on the need for independent assessments,
General Musharraf, as expected, emphasised the need for the projection
of Pakistan on the state-run electronic media as "a modern and progressive
Islamic state." He also did not fail to stress that Pakistan's "national
strategic interest should be projected with particular focus on the country's
principled stand on Kashmir."
Private TV and Radio Channels
Official confirmation that the government is considering regulating private
television and radio channels came during mid-2000 with the queerly named
Regulatory Authority for Media Broadcasting Ordinance (RAMBO) renamed
as Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on January 16,
2001. The PEMRA has been entrusted to frame regulations, rules for establishment
and operation of Radio and television channels in the private sector.
The ordinance mandated applications for licenses from private parties
for radio and TV stations in different categories, including local community-based
stations, special subject stations, provincial-scale stations, national-scale
stations and international-scale stations.
The reiteration of the pledge came on 19 February 2001 when Secretary
Information Anwar Mahmood said an ordinance to this effect would be promulgated
soon. He, however, betrayed a hint of how sincerely the government viewed
the idea of private electronic media organisations when he said at a book
launching ceremony: "There is hardly any potential for television
channels in the private sector."
More than 25 applications for setting up radio stations in different
parts of the country are pending with the ministry. Similarly about 10
private groups are interested in their own television channels but none
have been awarded a license yet.
While the Ministry of Information has recommended a level playing field
so that PTV can compete with private channels, there has not been an announcement
to this effect so far.
Are private channels sustainable?
On April 11, 2001 daily Dawn reported that hundreds of employees of Shaheen
Pay TV were not paid salaries for the last four months as the organization-a
subsidry of Shaheen foundation is passing through financial straits.
Shaheen Pay TV is the first private television network in the country,
which telecast the transmissions of nine foreign television channels and
was launched during the Benazir Bhutto government in 1994. There were
reports that the PTV instructed the Shaheen Pay TV not to telecast sports
events-a huge source of revenues. FM100 the country's first private entertainment
radio channel and a magazine "Asslam-o-Alekum Pakistan" launched
by the same organization are also facing financial problems. Now National
Accountability Bureau has announced to probe the award of this contract.
Whereas the case has already been trailed against ex-information secretary,
Hussain Haqqani who was acquitted honorably.
Similarly the government on April 9, 2001 banned the showing of video/CD
Pakistani, Indian and English movies by cable operators through out the
country. Ostensibly the decision has been taken to protect the copyrights
of the filmmakers. Juxtaposed to this decision remains a situation that
according to the News (November 22, 2000) there are about 50,000 outlets
and rental establishments dealing in the illegal video film business in
the country. The ministry of culture has constituted a committee to consider
amendments in the Motion Pictures Ordinance 1979 to regulate the unlawful
business of video films.
Coming from Outside
According to the Gallup polls 22 percent of the total urban population
is now tuned to cable and satellite for television viewing. Until recently
the private sector in the country could not succeed in launching a Pakistani
based news/entertainment channel owing to red tapism.
Indus Vision, a Pakistani based entertainment satellite channel was launched
on 12 March 2001 and is being aired from Hong Kong through Asia Sat 3.
It is headed by an ex-employee of PTV Ghazanfar Ali-a pioneer of private
production in Pakistan. The channel intends to produce its own current
affairs and news contents.
Stricter Censor Policy
There was also ample evidence that the government was hardening its censor
policies for state television after the PTV censor body was reconstituted
with the official mandate to "ensure religious, national, cultural,
moral and ethical values are the essence of the national electronic media."
The PTV in January 2001 convened a conference of all its general managers
and private producers where they were directed to strictly comply with
the new official censor codes. The PTV banned advertisement a product
pertaining to women hygiene as right-wing Jamaát-I-Islami termed
it a move to spread obscenity and Western culture.
Private Views on State TV
The government allowed a limited auctioning of the airtime on state television
for the private sector. One example is a slot bought by the owners of
the Urdu newspaper group Khabrain.
It daily runs a 2-hour (1 pm to 3pm) programme called Kisan Time. It
is not a current affairs programme but purely a commercial venture aimed
at tapping the vast pesticide advertisement market for the country's farming
community.
Conclusion
All in all, it was a mixed year for electronic media in Pakistan - heralding
much promise but in the end, found wanting on the pledges.
Internet Media
Planning to Police the Net
Computer- mediated communication (CMC) offers numerous possibilities
for new media as well as for the existing off-line media. The World Wide
Web and the Net has revolutionized the media production, marketing and
consumption patterns in the country. Daily Dawn was the first Pakistani
newspaper that went on-line in mid 1990s and attracted huge readership
abroad. Today almost every major off-line publication in the country has
on-line presence along with modest proliferation of purely net-based news
and views outlets.
However, the un-ceremonial death of The Frontier Post, Peshawar in January
2001, caused by publication of an e-mailed letter to the editor conveys
that these possibilities are not risk free. The non-professional reliance
on virtual can cost the real.
Pakistan jumped onto the techno-bandwagon in 1990s. Presently there are
more than 50 ISP (Internet Services Providers) in the country and according
to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority the number of the Internet subscribers
(as on January 10, 2001) had reached 150,024 and 140 licenses for setting
up data networks or Internet services had been issued. The Pakistan Telecommunication
Corporation run Paknet alone has the largest number of Internet subscribers
with 60,000 connections while it plans to have 50,000 new Internet users
during the next year.
The actual number of Internet users could be higher than the figures
recorded as several individuals in many cases use one connection. The
government is striving to provide free of cost Internet connectivity to
universities and educational institutions. On April 18, 2001 federal minister
for Science and Technology, Dr. Atta-ur-Rehman claimed that 380 cities,
towns and villages were networked. In August 2000 there were only 29 cities.
Along with mushroom growth of Cyber Cafes in various cities, government
has provided Internet kiosks at major railway stations, post offices,
and airports. The state-run Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has embarked on an
ambitious plan to establish 1800 kiosks at PSO petrol pumps through out
the country. The government is pushing the idea of Virtual Universities,
Pakistan Television and Radio Pakistan broadcast special programmes like
Cyber World and ministry of science and technology is exploring the possibilities
of a separate IT (Information Technology) Channel. The ambitious project
of E-governance involving the cost in the range of Rs 29 million intends
to put vital official information in public domain.
Presently English is the language of the Net. In order to over come language
barrier Sustainable Development Network Pakistan, International Conservation
Union and National College of Arts are busy in promoting "Urdu Web
Authoring". The government has promulgated a standard Urdu script
to achieve inter-operatability on the Net. The National Language Authority
in March 2001 also arranged an Urdu software competition to expedite the
efforts to indigenise the language of the Net. Earlier various software
houses created their own scripts, which lacked inter-operatability.
The idea of Cyber Community Center in Gawader, Balochistan on April 10,
2001 in collaboration with UNDP/IUCN//SDNP and local NGO Rural Development
Community Development Council indicate the community based potential of
the Net.
New situation new restrictions
As far as the freedom on the Net is concerned there are inherent difficulties
in policing or censoring it. Even the high-tech global efforts to police
the Net has not fully succeeded. However the traditionally restrictive
and close mind-set of authorities in Pakistan decided to police the Net
through a Network Access Point (NAP) in May 2000.
There were reports in December 2000 that Pakistan will have a singular
point of interaction of all outgoing and incoming Internet traffic. With
the help of such controversial Network Access Points (NAP) the regulatory
body can redirect the requests of information to their desired destinations
without having to go outside the country to a similar station, as is the
practice. The move was considered as reversal of the freedom promised
by the Net and government as every e-mail and data-file would become vulnerable
to check and scrutiny by the government agencies.
Reportedly the plan was to frustrate the Net based Telephony (voice transmission)
especially the long distance calls. Presently the state-run, Pakistan
Telecommunication Corporation (PTCL) is the only monopoly enjoying access
to International gateway. The PTCL is still going ahead with its NAP plan,
but with a little change that there would be multiple network access points.
The fears are that through such mechanism the security agencies would
be able to police the Net on much abused pretext of national security.
Dependence on Government Monopoly
On October 27, 2000 the PTCL denied telephonic access to the Jama'at-I-Islami
(JI) media office for data transmission from Qurtaba city near Islamabad.
The JI had made special arrangements for the live transmission of its
congregation on the Internet. The idea was frustrated when the local PTCL
staff declined line for data transmission, which was promised earlier
and was paid for. The JI web site recorded 11,000 hits on the first day
and according to the party the impressive response panicked the government.
Closed minds new media
On December 21, 2000 daily The Nation reported that Planning and Development
Punjab has banned sanction of Internet connections. The rationale was
to restrict flow of unauthorized information. The decision crippled research
related institutions as well.
On March 5, 2001 daily Dawn reported that the chief executive secretariat
directed the federal and provincial governments to take measures for protecting
official websites from hostile agencies and hackers. The federal divisions
and provincial departments have also been asked to get their software
cleared from the National Communication Security Board of the cabinet
division. The government has also approved the services of two ISP: Public
Data Com and Comsats for the government departments. As a measure for
securing the official websites the government banned use of connected
computers for typing or storing of any official correspondence. Exchange
of classified messages by government departments through Internet has
also been banned. The official directive says that officials would not
share the user ID password. It will be known to the designate official
only and is to be changed frequently.
Access to Information & Communication Channels
in Pakistan
Radio sets per 1,000 people 92
Television sets per 1,000 people 65
Cable Connections per 1,000 people 2.2
Daily Newspapers copies per 1,000 people 21
Personal Computers per 1,000 people 1.2
Telephone mainlines per 1,000 people 19
Cellular mobile phones subscribers per 1,000 people 01
Public payphones per 1,000 people 0.1
Fax machines per 1,000 people 1.2
Internet hosts per 1,000 people 0.15
Source:
Human Development in South Asia,
Mehbubul Haq Human Development Centre
MEDIA CONSUMPTION PATTERNS IN URBAN PAKISTAN
51 percent urban dwellers regularly read Newspaper.
Out of them;
95 percent of urban dwellers read Urdu Newspapers.
· 8 percent of urban dwellers read English newspapers.
· 53 percent regularly watch Television. While 73 percent have
a television set, 12 percent VCR, 29 percent tape recorders and 9 percent
dish antennas.
· 25 percent listen Radio.
· 7 percent go to Cinema
· There are 1,50,024 Internet users in 296 cities/towns of Pakistan.
They share their connections with family members, and consumers at Cyber
cafes.
Sources:
Pakistan Advertisers Society and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority
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