While the Ministry of Information has finalised regulations for the journalist endowment fund set up especially on the instructions of the Prime Minister, the Finance Ministry is withholding the release of Rs 200 million for the last four months. The grant was announced by the Prime Minister in August this year for the establishment of endowment fund as seed money for the welfare of journalists including indigent and disabled journalists. Many journalists were injured or killed during the last few years. Separately, the Finance Ministry has also not released Rs 5.5 million to the information ministry as allocated in budget 2011-12 (current financial year) under head of ‘A05270’ for the welfare of journalists.
The Information Ministry has already moved a summary for the approval of regulations for providing financial assistance to journalists in distress and provision of funds by the Finance Ministry will help the endowment fund become operative. The government had provided a fund of Rs. 5.5 million to Information Ministry in the financial year 2011-12 in the head of account ‘A05270’. This amount was meant to provide financial assistance to the press clubs, journalist organisations and the deserving journalists, which was too meager for the purpose.
The Ministry of I&B has recently framed regulations to operate the fund and devise procedure for disbursement of the fund in consultation with leading press clubs and journalistic bodies like PFUJ. Talking to Pakistan Today, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Pervez Shaukat expressed concerns over delay on part of finance ministry in releasing the promised amounts. “Many journalists are approaching us for grants for their severe troubles including chronic diseases but the finance division has not provided funds to information ministry to make schemes operative,” he said. A recently released report of Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has indicated that as many as 16 journalists were killed and 47 injured in Pakistan during 2011. “Among the 16 journalists, five journalists were allegedly abducted by agencies and their bullet riddled bodies were found dumped on the roadside.
Five journalists were killed in bomb blasts while reporting and six were gunned down in target killings. One journalist remains missing after he was reportedly abducted by an unidentified person,” the report said, adding that about 35 working journalists, 10 cameramen, one photographer, two drivers and one satellite engineer working for the print media and television channels were injured during separate attacks.
