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Friday, November 30, 2012


Lawyers want SC to stop muzzling critics in media

* PBC, SCBA endorse HRW concerns on use of contempt of court powers by superior courts to prevent media from air programmes critical of judiciary

By Hasnaat Malik

ISLAMABAD: The representatives of superior bars have endorsed Human Rights Watch’s (HRW) recommendations that Pakistani superior courts’ should stop using their contempt of court power to prevent media from airing programmes that are critical of judiciary.

Talking to Daily Times, Pakistan Bar Council Vice Chairman Akhtar Hussain and SCBA General Secretary Raja Javed Iqbal backed the HRW report which expressed concerns over the use of contempt of court power by judges in Pakistan to stop criticism of the judiciary in the media.

The PBC vice chairman said that restriction was not the solution of any matter, adding that he was therefore against restraining orders. He also said that if anyone commits crime, he should be persecuted according to law “rather than issuing restraining orders to stop anti-judiciary programmes”.

Akhtar Hussain, however, expressed reservations regarding Pakistan People’s Party Senator Faisal Raza Abidi’s behaviour towards the judiciary and called his style of criticism “nonsense”.

Raja Javed Iqbal also supported the HRW report. He said that judges should take media’s criticism for their learning.

Supporting the HRW report, PBC Free Legal Aid Committee Chairman Ramzan Chaudhry said that lawyers always support independent media “therefore any restraining order about media programmes will be unacceptable”.

He also said that media itself has the right to form its code of conduct regarding these issues and judiciary should not intervene in this regard.

Pakistan People’s Party senior lawyer Babar Awan, whose practicing licence is suspended since January 2012, said that the HRW report is justified to be critical of courts.

Likewise, Hamid Khan, who is head of a pro-judiciary lawyers group said, “In my personal capacity, I think the media should not be banned but on the other hand, media should also assure that reports should be discreet”.

Cases pertaining to the media are on the rise in the superior courts.

Since the start of the lawyers’ movement, relationship between superior courts and media has been cordial and the chief justice of Pakistan has taken most of the high profile suo motu notices on the basis of news reports.

Similarly, due to efficient coverage by the media which has highlighted observations of judges, public image of the judiciary is much better today than other institutions of the state. But despite this, it has been noticed that court’s proceedings related to media have been dominant since June 2012.

The court on June 15 took a suo motu notice over an interview of business tycoon Malik Riaz on Dunya TV and issued notices to the two TV anchors who conducted the interview as well as the media group’s owner.

Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk

 

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