German ambassador to Pakistan Dr Michael Koch has said that his country actively supported the independent media in Pakistan because they were an integral part and a pre-condition to strong and stable democracy in any society.
Speaking at the national media conference here on Friday, Koch said it was great to see that representatives of media organisations and journalists from all parts of the country participated in the conference.
The event was hosted by Individualland Pakistan, a non-profit consultancy, in collaboration with Friedrich Naumann Foundation at a local hotel. “The Pakistani media holds enough independence and is a source of hope for the long-term democracy in Pakistan,” observed Dr Koch.
The ambassador also said that practicing journalism in Pakistan was a serious and risky business and “hats off to its practitioners who are braving the conditions to further the cause of vibrant media”.
The two-day of media conference entitled “Pakistan Media: Present and Future” drew a large number of journalists from all parts of the country including a strong representation from KPK.
Individualland is hosting this conference after a long series of workshops across the country to sensitise the media on gender equity issues.
The series was supported by Aurat Foundation and USAID. Gulmina Bilal Ahmed, the director of Individualland, opened the morning session with some striking statistics.
“Since 1992, as many as 41 journalists have laid down their lives in the line of duty. The media in Pakistan today is on the forefront of conflict without much safeguards,” she said in her opening remarks.
Olaf Kellerhoff, the resident director of Friedrich Naumann Foundation, said the NF in partnership with Individualland had started the concept of Free, Independent, Responsible Media (FIRM) and the foundation would like to continue promoting the professional and independent media.
In the second session of the day, the audience heard the views on citizen’s media space vs commercial space. The participants were involved in the discussion on the basics like what media stands for while exploring contemporary themes like urban base and rural bias.
Mazhar Arif from the Society of Alternative Media and Research that the owners of media organizations and journalists of the country should consider journalism as public service and they must give more space to citizens and to the issues concerning them.
Aniq Zafar from Communication Research Strategies said as the public empowerment and their participation is necessary for democracy similarly public participation and representation is necessary for free media. He said that media should avoid sensitization and care for the public interest.
During the last session of the day the panellists picked on the themes like “Dissecting the Jihadi/ Militant Media”. The session was presided over by Samina Ahmed, the director of the International Crises Group.
Fellow panellists included Amir Rana from Pakistan Institutes of Peace Studies and Syed Irfan Ashraf from Journalism Department of Peshawar University.
Dr Ahmed said one would have to define what constituted a jihadi media or one should not equate Jihadi media with non-violent sectarian media.
Rana said there had to be made a distinction between radical media and militant media. The speakers said various political parties ran their newspapers and magazines to promote their ideas and political interests.
They said that there were some newspapers and magazines that were promoting militancy in the country.
