News
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
No restrictions on media freedom, govt tells Senate
* Sherry Rehman hopes media will formulate own code of conduct
By Irfan Ghauri
ISLAMABAD: The government assured the Senate on Monday that it believed in the freedom of the press and would not attempt to gag the media. Winding up a debate on performance of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA), Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman said the previous government had used the regulatory authority to suppress the media. Code of conduct: She said she hoped that the media would formulate a code of conduct by itself and that the government would only act as a facilitator during this process. “The government does not want to get into the business of code of conduct when the media had been facing tremendous restrictions under previous regime,” she said. The Information minister said the government believed in reconciliation rather than confrontation. She said the new government had already made its first attempt to repeal the November-3 amendments to the PEMRA Ordinance by introducing a bill in the National Assembly that now lay with the standing committee. Sherry said the government would gradually make more legislation to ensure there were no curbs on the media. In democracy, there was always a room for improvement, she said. Sherry said the government would consult the media before making any legislations and that it would never block private TV channels. Prof Khursheed from the Jamat-e-Islami (JI), who moved the motion to discuss PEMRA’s performance, said parliamentary review was mandatory before making any new legislation. He said the new government should not follow the previous government’s practice of promulgating ordinances. He said PEMRA was used for “arm-twisting” of the media in the past. PEMRA had failed to perform its duty, he said, adding that the media was capable of formulating its own code of conduct. Senator Anwar Bhinder said hasty legislation was against the spirit of parliamentary democracy. Dr Khalid Ranjha said the press should be free but the defamation law should also be enhanced. Muhammad Hussain and Khaliq Pirzada said the media should not violate Islamic teachings. Responding to a call-attention notice, Law Minister Farooq H Naek told the House that the Intelligence Bureau (IB) taps some people’s telephone calls for security reasons after approval from the prime minister. The Senate was adjourned to meet again at 10 am on Tuesday.
Courtesy Daily Times