PFUJ calls for end to Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists
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.
JournalismPakistan.com | Published last year | JP Staff Reporter
Join our WhatsApp channel
ISLAMABAD—Journalists across Pakistan, especially in the militancy-riddled province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, have essentially turned out to be soft targets for intimidation, attacks, kidnapping, and killing. In areas of this province, reporters run grave risks from state and non-state actors, according to an editorial published in Business Recorder on Sunday.
Last month, Khalil Jibran, a senior journalist from Landi Kotal working for local dailies and a Pashto TV channel, was shot dead by unidentified armed men, suspected to be activists of a militant outfit. After he was killed, the only source of income for his family, a snooker club, was torched—allegedly by the same suspects. The children of Jibran, in their teenage, have called for a transparent inquiry by the federal and provincial governments and moving them to some safe place with compensation for their loss.
Recently, the non-governmental organization Freedom Network released a report, "News Tribes of Northwest—Saving Journalists in Pakistan's Tribal Districts," about the degrading situation for media practitioners in KP's tribal districts. The report highlights that there is hardly any space for journalists following the resurgence of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
In this regard, the editorial of Business Recorder comments that even though the erstwhile FATA has been merged with KP, all remains almost unchanged in terms of freedom of expression and journalists' safety. Dominating are the remnants of the colonial-era Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) mindset, wherein tribal traditions, official interference, and many undeclared bans on reporting of movements confront journalists. Journalists said they cannot take risks and pressure for information; thus, much self-censorship is observed in the tribal districts. They spoke of repeated threats from different stakeholders in the conflict, who were unhappy about their coverage.
When the report came out, Muhammad Ali Saif, advisor to the KP Chief Minister on information, announced through a press conference that a bill would soon be tabled in the provincial assembly to curb impunity of crimes against media persons. Though a welcome development, this alone is unlikely to prove much of a deterrent against the powerful elements that go after the media persons.
What has been emphasized in the editorial of Business Recorder is the necessity of a sustained campaign by media persons, rights organizations, and civil society groups to build a protective environment for journalists across the country but, more importantly, in areas where conflict rages.
Photo: AFP
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.
October 30, 2025: NewsOne TV remains on air but faces mass layoffs and delayed salaries, exposing Pakistan’s worsening media crisis and financial instability.
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.
October 31, 2025 Radio Free Asia, a US government-funded broadcaster covering tightly controlled Asian media environments, has suspended all news operations after federal funding dried up.