The claim of freedom of press by All-Pakistan Newspapers Society  (APNS) termed by Pakistan Federal Union of Journalist, a bundle of lies.       

Islamabad/Dec.31: In a statement issued by Mr. Shamsul Islam Naz General Secretary,  The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalist (PFUJ) has sharply reacted over the statement issued by the media owners organization -- the APNS --, in which it has been claimed that “the All-Pakistan Newspapers Society has always stood for the cause of freedom of press and expression.” The PFUJ termed it a bundle of lies and a calculated move to misguide the people at large.

In a rejoinder issued by the PFUJ here on Thursday on the APNS claim of striving for freedom of  the press in the country, the PFUJ said that since the inception of the APNS, its agenda and objectives, which it practically demonstrated were to "black-mail each and every government in power by exploiting leverage of the media for protecting their vested interest, thus acquiring a number of concessions in shape of taxes, import duties and other levies and gaining special treatment from the governments."

The PFUJ said that although the APNS claims that it had always stood for the cause of "freedom of press and expression," it cannot even quote a single example in which a single media owner had ever been targeted by terrorists, whereas since 9/11 incident, more than 50 journalists have lost their lives at the hands of terrorist groups or have been targeted and killed. 

The PFUJ said that the APNS cannot challenge this hard fact that in newspaper publications, it is the only media owner who alone has the power to decide the publication of articles etc or the contents to be aired on a TV channel, and over ninety per cent space and time is being consumed for criticizing civilian governments, scandalizing them. 

“Is any code of ethics being followed by the APNS for bringing out newspapers or media channels, adherence to rule of law, implementation of labour  laws, in their media houses, extending lawful rights to their employees and to ensure job security as even appointment letters are not issued to employees, and contract system had been introduced by them to escape from a number of legal obligations, depriving journalists of benefits of job security, provident fund, gratuity, medical cover and other facilities.  

Not only this, media owners have devised a unique method of deceiving the law, and under this trick, fake companies are being operated by them on paper on fake names, although they themselves are their real owners. 

The PFUJ pointed out that the APNS and its member publications are so greedy that there is no judicious distribution of advertisements and reading material on the front and back pages or even other pages of various newspapers. 

On many occasions, even space for headlines, banner headlines is sold by charging handsome money by the so-called leading national dailies and members of the APNS. “Is it in the line of freedom of expression and press?” the PFUJ questioned. 

It quoted an instance in which no front page news items were published by leading national dailies and space was sold to publish an advertisement on front or back pages to mint money. 

It further contended that big size advertisements by quacks and wrong-doings of various fake organizations have prominently been published by newspapers and also aired by the electronic media without any check. 

Ads of fake medicines, substandard food items and fake educational institutions as  well as financial organizations are accepted without any check, and even advertisements of condoms are aired on TV channels at prime time and published prominently as display advertisements on various pages, just to mint money, which has upset our cultural values and so much so as a result of such unchecked ads people are deprived of their hard earned money.

It all seems that it was being allowed by the APNS on the basis of its self-created code of ethics which was meant just to mint money, the PFUJ added.