As 2018 draws to a close, representatives of the fourth estate here in Pakistan have but one wish for the New Year. Namely, that those at the helm recognise once and for all that proclaiming the country does not make it so. And that one of democracy\u2019s most important benchmarks remains an independent media. Indeed, it must come before and remain after the quest for soft power has been and gone.
\nYet as things stand, the last year has been a challenging one for journalists. And a changing of the guard did not alter that. In fact, for many, it has only exacerbated the threat to the fourth estate. The primary problem being one of finances. For the question of salaries, largely linked as they are to government advertising dues, must precede even the upholding of such lofty notions of the media being a defender of the truth or a keeper of checks and balances. After all, a journalist who is not paid for labour done becomes indentured. And when this happens across the industry \u2014 it, in turn, transforms into the erosion of professional integrity. Simply because, when the fourth estate is fighting for its very survival it has less time and energy to battle the corrupt and callous. And everything in between.
\nWhen news outlets have been degraded to such a grave extent, the leap towards crushing them on the editorial front is little more than a short hop, skip, and a jump. The upshot of which is censorship; both from outside and within. For those daring to defy the odds the risk is financial suffocation. The country\u2019s oldest national daily still faces massive distribution choking. All for accurately quoting an elected civilian government. Things took an even worse turn when the latter was unseated and a reporter from the same paper secured and exclusive interview. The price for doing his job was being put on trial for treason. And it is the same story across the digital-print divide. Sister publications are folding. Newsrooms are laying off staff without either warning or severance packages. Downsizing now encompasses salary cuts, too. In fact, it has been left up to working journalists to approach the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) to seek relief.<\/p>\n
This war on the media cannot go on. If it does, it is one that the state will ultimately lose. For much of the financial lifeline that the authorities are hoping will be thrown their way to save a haemorrhaging economy depends on promoting democratic values. It is right there in the small print. Either comply on this front or sit on the naughty step reserved for states considered rogue by the rich western nations that control international purse-strings. From there is the path towards autocracy.<\/p>\n
Ten years of uninterrupted democracy and this is where we stand. Today, the issue of a free media has become one of human rights. And it is one that we, the fourth estate, will fight until the bitter end. For the pen has always been mightier than the sword.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As 2018 draws to a close, representatives of the fourth estate here in Pakistan have but one wish for the New Year. Namely, that those at the helm recognise once and for all that proclaiming the country does not make it so. And that one of democracy\u2019s most important benchmarks remains an independent media. Indeed, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-article"],"yoast_head":"\n