Press Gallery: Let’s put our house in order

By Rana Qaisar

ISLAMABAD: Journalists continued boycotting National Assembly proceedings for the third consecutive day on Thursday. The government, on the instructions of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz that the journalists had breached the privilege of the House, withdrew a resolution that was unanimously passed by the treasury and opposition to form a special committee of the House to look into the May 3 incident when police commandos thrashed 40 journalists in front of parliament, arrested them and kept them locked up for three hours. This was how we observed Freedom of Press Day.

The prime minister’s decision to withdraw the resolution and his refusal to form a special committee of the House came as a rude shock not only to journalists, but it also agitated the opposition, as, according to them, a unanimous resolution of the House could not be withdrawn with a simple majority. All opposition members walked out to protest the government’s decision, which equally surprised Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain, who was also not taken into confidence before Dr Sher Afgan Niazi made a statement in the House on the prime minister’s behalf.

Apparently, the prime minister took this decision to side with two of his cabinet members, Aftab Sherpao and Sheikh Rashid, whom the government believes were insulted by journalists for being involved in the May 3 incident. Sheikh Rashid, who had come to the protesting journalists, was ‘indecently’ treated and went back without speaking and listening to the journalists. Then some ‘uninvited’ journalists entered Aftab Sherpao’s residence on Wednesday and asked those present there to boycott his press briefing. This created a ‘scene’ at the interior minister’s residence and fearing similar ‘treatment’ the information minister also cancelled his press briefing.

If the prime minister ordered the withdrawal of the resolution only because of, what the government called, the indecent treatment of the two ministers, one would ask him: was the treatment meted out to journalists on May 3 decent? This is not to justify any act of indecency from either side. But, Mr PM, don’t teach us about decency or indecency. Sir, the protesting journalists knew your limitations. You cannot afford to facilitate them at the cost of your PR with those obstructing the implementation of the Wage Award. If you were a worker-friendly prime minister, you would have long addressed the problems of working journalists. Thank you very much for withdrawing the resolution and blocking the formation of the special committee.

Now with all doors of rapprochement shutting one by one, I fear disunity among the journalists. The ‘PID’ will be active now in a day or two to create a rift among us and, I am sure, it will succeed to persuade those, who are always ready to be on the right side of every government, to end their boycott and sit in the Press Gallery, which continues to be rudderless since the first day of this parliament. Reason: the division and grouping among journalists. What needs to be understood is that the Press Gallery is an extension of the House. It does not represent any journalist union or political party. It’s time for us to have an elected representative body of journalists covering parliamentary proceedings. And if we fail to organise ourselves, we won’t be relevant any more and our voice would remain unheard. It is also important for us to sideline those who always create obstacles in the way to any movement toward unity and discipline in our ranks. The speaker does not know who to talk to with when it comes to resolving issues of journalists and this is why all our protests and walkouts end without our concerns being redressed. Let’s put our house in order as together we stand, divided we fall.

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