Several media groups, including IFEX member the Pakistan Press Foundation, have collaborated and worked hard to push for this landmark legislation.
This statement was originally published on pakistanpressfoundation.org on 10 November 2021.
Pakistan Press Foundation has welcomed the passage of the Protection of Journalists and Media Professional Bill 2021by the National Assembly.
The bill was presented by Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari at the assembly session on November 8. It had been tabled in the National Assembly in May 2021 and has now finally been passed by the lower house.
PPF said that passage of the bill is a positive step forward for the safety of journalists and an end to impunity in crimes against journalists. We commend the efforts of the government and the opposition in unanimously passing the bill.
PPF expressed confidence that the bill would be expeditiously passed by the Senate and then signed into law by the President of Pakistan. PPF called on the government to ensure its implementation so that it can become an effective tool for the safety of the media in Pakistan. We also hope that the government will take civil society members and the relevant stakeholders in confidence when developing the rules and regulations for this legislation so that it can be implemented in a way that is most effective in providing journalists safety.
The passage of the federal bill comes just months after the Sindh government passed a similar safety bill at the provincial level. PPF called on other provinces to follow suit, and similar to the federal and Sindh level bills, also develop their own legislation for the safety and protection of media workers.
The PPF being the oldest organization working to strengthen the media, played a pivotal role in expediting the process for the passage of legislation on the much needed journalists’ protection. Soon after the presentation of the draft Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Bill 2020 in the federal cabinet, PPF strove to maintain the momentum for the legislation.
PPF initiated a review of the draft bill by international experts to bring it in line with international practices, followed by a series of consultative sessions with editors, journalists, lawyers and human right practitioners; and then the publication of a policy paper on the draft with specific clause-wise recommendations on improving the bill.
The publication of the policy paper was followed by lobbying efforts with leaders of political parties at the national and provincial levels, that included meetings with President of Pakistan Arif Alvi, ministers, senators, members of the national and provincial assemblies. The political leaders, both from ruling and opposition parties, were convinced through PPF’s efforts and ensured they would play a role for the legislation on journalists’ protection. The draft bill was also brought under discussion by some of these parliamentarians.
Earlier PPF advocacy campaigns with the provincial government have resulted in the passage of the Sindh Protection of Journalists and Other Media Protection Bill 2021.
