Amendments to PEMRA Ordinance Censured by Pakistan Peoples Party
Pakistan Times National News Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party has condemned the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Ordinance 2007 issued Monday as yet another shameful assault on the freedom of the media and called upon the civil society, the professional media bodies and the human rights organisations to reject it.

The government on Monday amended the PEMRA Ordinance giving itself sweeping powers to cancel license, seize broadcast equipment and seal premises of private TV channels and broadcast houses that do not toe the regime’s line.

The amending ordinance also empowered the Authority to suspend the license even before investigations are completed and culpability established.

In a statement Monday spokesperson of the PPP former Senator Farhatullah Babar said that the amendment ordinance was the second deadly blow dealt on the media in two days and reflected the regime’s nervousness with the way it was exposed by the media before the world.

It may be mentioned that just a day before TV channels were banned from airing live talk shows on the CJ issue and warned them of punitive action for broadcasts that were “anti national and anti state” or cast “aspersions on the integrity of the armed forces”.

He said that by inserting of a new draconian clause 39-A in the ordinance today the regime could slam new curbs on the broadcasters just by issuing new regulations in an official gazette without reference to Parliament and the stakeholders.

“This is unprecedented that a government body PEMRA comprising of government officials is given the powers to make new regulations stifling the media just by issuing an official notification”

The amending ordinance is an intolerable and unacceptable assault on the independence of media, he said.●