Committee to Protect Journalists
330 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001 USA Phone: (212) 465-1004 Fax: (212) 465-9568 Web: www.cpj.org E-Mail: media@cpj.org
Contact: Bob Dietz
Telephone: (609) 647-3075
http://www.cpj.org
e-mail: bdietz@cpj.org
CPJ statement on expulsion of journalists from Pakistan
New York, November 10, 2007 — The Committee to Protect Journalists issued this statement today in response to reports that three British journalists have been given 72 hours to leave Pakistan after their paper ran an editorial that used an expletive in an allusion about President Pervez Musharraf. Two of the reporters work for London’s Daily Telegraph and another who works for the Sunday Telegraph.
“At a time when all media are under tremendous pressure in Pakistan, the government should withdraw its 72-hour expulsion order for three journalists. While the term used in the Daily Telegraph’s editorial is certainly offensive in Pakistan’s cultural context, we fear that what has really happened is that the government has become overly sensitive to criticism of President Musharraf. Expelling reporters for editorials written in their home offices is unfair and unnecessary,” said Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator.
“Our greater concern is the fact that independent television news stations remain off the air in Pakistan. The lack of local news coverage of the important events in the country is made worse by the fact that Pakistanis cannot see international new broadcasts either,” Dietz said.
CPJ is a New York–based, independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide. For more information, visit www.cpj.org.
