The federal government’s revelation in the Senate that as many as 42 journalists have been killed in Pakistan over the last four years, is extremely troubling. It is clear that journalism and all those who practice it have come under increasing threat ever since the PTI government took office, but 42 in just four years shows how the state has completely failed this profession.
Compare this number to the total number of journalists killed in Pakistan since 1993—a total of 77 lives lost in the past thirty years—and the true extent of the problem becomes even clearer. The past four years have seen 42 journalists killed, while the preceding 26 years before that saw only 35 deaths.
Naturally, the complete lack of interest in the investigation and conviction of these cases also has a part to play in the impunity with which journalists are targeted. But it is important to remember that this number does not even scratch the surface in terms of the surviving number of journalists actually targeted and attacked for their professions—the list of those contains some of the most popular and well-known media personalities of the country.
The targeted attacks, online bullying and clampdowns through state institutions have greatly harmed the profession and as a result, the information, analysis, opinion and news provided to the audience have also taken a hit. Governments only tend to remember the importance of the profession when they are out of power and need to get their narratives across. But it is hoped that some portion of the leadership has the foresight to understand that a threat to journalists affects the rights of many concerned actors—the average citizen of course, in terms of the information they are provided, but political leaders as well, and self-preservation at the very least, should spur some legislative action to offer more protection in this field.
