Govt, PTI at odds over proposed changes to Pemra law

• PTI says it would raise voice in support of press freedom at all fora.
• Party says imposing censorship to control media unacceptable.
• Marriyum says those criticising Pemra bill "have not read it".

ISLAMABAD: The federal government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are at odds over the Pemra amendment bill as the party vowed to defend the media freedom that it believes will be undermined by the newly proposed changes to the law, The News reported.

The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting on Friday approved the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which also includes a definition to disinformation.

However, rejecting the draft law, PTI pledged to thwart all attempts to arrest media persons and resist any such effort to curtail the freedom of expression, come what may.

PTI's spokesperson alleged that the "puppet government" held in abeyance the Constitution for the last 15 months and unleashed a reign of terror to silence the sane dissenting voices in the country.

The spokesperson said the PTI is the only federal and the largest political party in the country that would raise its voice in support of press freedom in the country at all fora.

He contended that imposing censorship to control the media and free speech was unacceptable.

He went on to say that in the absence of the largest representative political force of Pakistan, the legislation by the government had no value, adding that suppression of freedom of expression was the topmost agenda of the government imposed through a conspiracy.

The spokesman said that the sensitivity of the issue could be judged that an illegal, unconstitutional and unjustified ban was imposed on broadcasting the name, statement, photo and speech of the head of Pakistan’s largest political party and former PM Imran Khan.

Contrarily, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb was of the view that the bill is the "bill of Pakistan, its people, media and journalists, which protects the rights of journalists".

She said that restrictions were imposed on the media due to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority’s (Pemra) order in the PTI’s era, when the party tried to bring the Pemra black law, despite opposition from all the political parties and media organisations.

Marriyum said that during the last four years of PTI, there was censorship on the media, and the former prime minister Imran Khan got the title of “media predator”. 

The title was not given to him by his political rivals or any organisation in Pakistan but by international journalistic organisations, keeping in view the freedom of expression in Pakistan.

She said that in the past, journalists were fired at, they were kidnapped and tortured, their programmes were stopped, and they were sent to jails.

She said that for the first time, the definition of disinformation and misinformation had been included in the Pemra law with the support of all media organisations. “We clarified the difference between misinformation and disinformation in the bill,” she said.

The minister said that the Pemra amendment bill was made in light of the resolutions approved by the United Nations Human Rights Committee and in consultation with journalists. 

“The media itself has determined its responsibility in this bill and those criticising the bill have not read it,” she said.

— Additional input from APP