A representative joint meeting of the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors, All Pakistan Newspapers Society and Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists on Sunday strongly condemned "the uncalled for, derogatory and humiliating attitude" of government officials handling media relations between Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and working journalists.
The meeting, held at the Karachi Press Club to take notice of the ugly incident that took place at the Darbar Hall of Sindh Governor House, adopted a joint resolution and decided to boycott the coverage of Prime Minister's press conference at Governor House, and other programmes, scheduled for Sunday.
Besides a large number of senior journalists, CPNE General Secretary Dr Jabbar Khattak, APNS General Secretary Kazi Asad Abid, PFUJ General Secretary Mazhar Abbas, Mahmoodul Aziz, Inqilab Matri, Naseer Hashmi, Sajjad Mir, Sarfraz Ahmed, Tahir Najmi, former president of Karachi Press Club Shamim-ur-Rehman, former president of Karachi Union of Journalists Wirasat Hussnain and former general secretary of Karachi Press Club Khursheed Abbasi spoke at this meeting.
Editors, publishers and senior journalists were invited to Governor House by Press Information Department, Sindh, on Saturday night to attend a press briefing by the Prime Minister on Sunday at 12 noon.
At the appointed time, editors and journalists reached the Governor House after getting themselves cleared from three different lists containing names of the invitees and drawn by three different departments and the one which usually the military secretary to Sindh governor vets. They were asked to occupy seat after leaving the front rows reserved for government servants including military officers and provincial ministers.
Two senior Editors, Inqilab Matri and Naseer Hashmi, were asked to occupy the front row. In the meantime, Sarfraz Ahmed and Tahir Najmi, Editors of two leading newspapers, along with other Editors also entered the Darbar Hall and occupied chairs in the front row.
But before the beginning of the press conference officers in uniform and civvies rudely asked all those occupying front row to leave their seats and move to back row. When the officials were told that the Editors were offered chairs in the front row, the officials refused to listen to them and said, "If they do not want to leave the chairs they may go out."
The officials were blunt and disrespectful towards the Editors and other journalists. They refused to listen to reason. Finding no other decent way to deal with the officials, many of them very senior and indifferent to all that was happening to journalists the Editors and journalists walked out of the Governor House and held a protest meeting at Karachi Press Club.
In the crowded meeting it was resolved that the journalists would not cover any government function at the Governor House till such time as an apology was tendered, in writing, by the officials responsible for the fiasco.
CPNE General Secretary Dr Jabbar Khattak in his remarks called for concerted efforts to maintain solidarity and unity among the entire journalist community irrespective of any distinction between owners, publishers, editors and working journalists.
APNS General Secretary Kazi Asad Abid said that he would firmly stand by his journalist colleagues and would not deter from staging protest whenever it would come to the maintenance of self-respect of the institution of editors and working journalists.
He said that owners, editors and working journalists should learn to resolve their issues themselves through the process of dialogue.
He condemned the attitude of the government towards media as a whole.
The jointly approved resolution said:
"This meeting of newspaper editors, publishers and working journalists held at the Karachi Press Club here on Sunday condemns in the strongest terms the most deplorable and insulting attitude of officials of the Sindh Governor House with the editors, publishers and pressmen invited to attend briefing and press conference by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.
"This meeting hereby resolves that all member publications of the CPNE and the APNS should totally boycott the coverage of 'commandeered' and manipulated press conference by the premier at the Governor House and all other functions of (the) premier in Karachi on Sunday.
"This meeting calls for an apology from the Governor House for this most deplorable treatment meted out to the editors, publishers and journalists, and wishes to record its determination to ensure and uphold the honour and dignity of the press and all its commends without distinction. It also calls upon the prime minister and governor of Sindh to take notice of the failure on the part of the Press Information Department and the Sindh Information Department and of their failure to drive home among the officials and executive of the Governor House and prime minister Secretariat to respect the media, especially when the meeting has been called by the prime minister. It is high time that this VIP culture and protocol culture (is) reviewed.
"The joint meeting also urges upon all the sections of print and electronic media to ensure full implementation of this resolution on the boycott of "arranged and manipulated" press conference and briefing by the prime minister.
"It is also decided that action will be taken against those individuals who attended this press conference by their respective journalist bodies and Press Club.
"The meeting also demands withdrawal of cases against journalists, lifting of ban on newspapers and weeklies registered since last month and release of editors of Wajood. The meeting condemns cancellation of declaration of daily Islam."
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