PFUJ recalls November 3, 2007 emergency as Pakistan’s darkest day
November 03, 2025: PFUJ recalls November 3, 2007, as Pakistan’s darkest day under Musharraf, urging protection for journalists and the abolition of laws threatening press freedom.
JournalismPakistan.com | Published 8 years ago
Join our WhatsApp channel
ISLAMABAD – Columnist Ayaz Amir, whose remarkable writings were a prominent feature of op-ed pages of Dawn and The News for many years, has quit writing columns in English.
That is bad news for thousands of his followers who just loved his writing and looked forward to reading his columns each week.
Amir told the website Danish.pk that he had stopped writing in English. He cited declining reader response for his decision. Until recently Amir had been writing columns in the English language for Dunya TV website.
Amir was quoted saying that some of his best work was for The Muslim and Viewpoint.
He served as a PML-N legislator from 2008-2013 in the National Assembly.
Amir was asked to leave Dawn after he decided to contest the National Assembly election from Chakwal in 2008.
Writing his ‘last’ column in Dawn on December 21, 2007 – Goodbye to some of this - he had hoped the separation would be temporary. It was not to be. “Contesting these elections, I am informed, spells the end of my long association with this newspaper. If it is to continue it will have to be in some other form. A harsh price to pay and, as I said, my heart is torn.”
He said for most of his “adult life I have been associated with this newspaper, starting when the full glory of General Ziaul Haq’s benign rule was upon this unfortunate land.” Then he had described himself as “not a politician who has come to journalism but a journalist who has occasionally dabbled in politics.”
Photo courtesy: zemtv.com
November 03, 2025: PFUJ recalls November 3, 2007, as Pakistan’s darkest day under Musharraf, urging protection for journalists and the abolition of laws threatening press freedom.
November 02, 2025: PFUJ urges Pakistan’s federal and provincial governments to end Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists and ensure their safety and press freedom.
November 02, 2025: Impunity for crimes against journalists deepens worldwide as Pakistan reports a 60 percent surge in attacks and weak enforcement of safety laws.
November 01, 2025: Pakistan Press Foundation reports 137 attacks on journalists in 2025, highlighting rising threats, legal harassment, and censorship on the International Day to End Impunity.
November 01, 2025: A viral Samaa TV clip featuring MNA Sher Afzal Marwat’s crude remarks and Talat Hussain’s laughter raises questions about the declining ethics of Pakistani television.
October 31, 2025: Police foiled a plot to kill DawnNewsTV journalist Tahir Naseer in Rawalpindi after arresting suspects hired for Rs200,000. Naseer says threats followed his reporting.
October 31, 2025: CPJ calls on Pakistan to bring Imtiaz Mir’s killers to justice after the journalist was allegedly murdered by a banned militant group in Karachi.
October 30, 2025: The PFUJ has condemned a fabricated drug case against journalist Matiullah Jan, calling it an attempt to silence him and urging authorities to quash the charges immediately.
November 03, 2025 Global journalist unions condemn the Indonesian agriculture minister’s lawsuit against Tempo, calling it a threat to press freedom and demanding that the case be withdrawn.
November 02, 2025 Independent outlet All About Macau to halt print and online operations amid rising pressure, financial strain, and legal threats, sparking press freedom concerns in the city.
November 01, 2025 Belarus court jails journalist Siarhei Chabotska for extremism and defaming the president, highlighting Minsk’s ongoing crackdown on press freedom.
November 01, 2025 Mexican journalist Miguel Angel Beltran was found murdered in Durango. CPJ urges authorities to ensure justice amid rising violence against journalists in Mexico.
November 01, 2025 UNESCO survey finds one-third of media lawyers cannot effectively defend journalists due to threats, limited resources, and lack of specialization.