CPJ is disturbed by editor’s continued persecution

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by evidence that the Pakistani government is continuing to persecute Najam Sethi, chief editor of the English-language weekly newspaper “The Friday Times”. In the last few weeks, various government agencies have blocked Sethi from leaving Pakistan, confiscated his passport, and filed more than two dozen cases of tax evasion […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by evidence that the Pakistani
government is continuing to persecute Najam Sethi, chief editor of the
English-language weekly newspaper “The Friday Times”. In the last few weeks,
various government agencies have blocked Sethi from leaving Pakistan,
confiscated his passport, and filed more than two dozen cases of tax evasion
against him and his family.

**Updates IFEX alerts of 23 June, 11 June, 7 June, 2 June, 1 June, 31 May,
26 May, 25 May, 18 May, 12 May, 10 May, 6 May, 5 May and 19 April 1999**

Early in the morning of 23 June 1999, at the Lahore International Airport,
officials from the Federal Immigration Authority (FIA) prevented Sethi from
boarding his scheduled flight to London, where he was due to accept an award
from Amnesty International recognizing “Journalists Under Threat.” According
to Sethi, FIA officials informed him that he is barred from traveling abroad
for as long as his name appears on the government’s Exit Control List. They
told him his name had been
added to the list on 2 June, which is the same day the government dropped
all charges against him and ordered his release.

Sethi was arrested at his home in Lahore on 8 May, and detained for several
weeks in the custody of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency,
the army’s intelligence unit. Government statements indicated that Sethi was
being investigated for “anti-state” activities, including his alleged
collaboration with Indian intelligence operatives. CPJ believes that Sethi’s
arrest stemmed from “The Friday Times”‘ consistent calls for the
administration to answer to charges of high-level corruption, coupled with
the editor’s recent work with a BBC television team investigating these
allegations.

Just after the FIA agents turned Sethi away at the airport on 23 June, he
was approached by an official in plainclothes standing nearby, who asked him
to hand over his passport. Sethi, assuming that the man was with the FIA,
complied with his request. The official then took Sethi’s passport under the
pretext of making a copy of it. When he did not return, Sethi asked to be
taken to the man’s office, whereupon he discovered that his passport had in
fact been seized by an agent from the Intelligence Bureau (IB). The agent,
who identified himself as Inspector Tariq Aziz, told Sethi that the IB would
return his passport by mail after “due verification purposes.” Sethi’s
passport had been returned to him just two days earlier, on 21 June, by the
ISI, which had been holding it ever since Sethi’s May arrest.

Meanwhile, Sethi and his family have received at least twenty-eight separate
notices from the income tax bureau, claiming millions of rupees in back
taxes (one million rupees is worth approximately US$21,850). Sethi says
these notices are nearly all back-dated, so that they are received only
after the deadline for replying has already passed. He says that the
government has frozen three bank accounts held by his wife, Jugnu Mohsin,
publisher of “The Friday Times”, and ordered the funds to be transferred
directly to the income tax collections department. According to Sethi,
officials are also threatening to seize his house as well as that of his
mother if the taxes are not paid.

Recommended Action

His Excellency Muhammad Nawaz Sharif

Prime Minister

Prime Minister’s Secretariat

Islamabad, Pakistan

FAX: +92 51 920 5532