Kalulushi, Zambia – Prominent Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir has been removed from the air a few days after speaking out against the country’s military during a protest rally against another journalist.
Mir told Al Jazeera that he had been told he had not had a “Capital Talk” on Geo News since Monday evening.
“I’ve just been told by Geo’s supervisors that I won’t be with them,” Mir said.
“He said there are a lot of challenges [after the statements at the protest last week]. He did not say where he came from. ”
Explaining the reason for the move, Geo News officials confirmed to Al Jazeera that Mir had been fired and would not hold the demonstration.
Experts told Al Jazeera that Geo News “was forced to burn [Mir]”.
Last week, Pakistani independent journalist Asad Ali Toor, best known for reporting on the government and the military in the country, was attack at his home in Islamabad by three unidentified men, who beat him up and warned him of his activity.
Speaking at a protest rally in Islamabad on Friday, Mir threatened to identify the perpetrators of the Pakistani media outbreak. He used a few words to describe the participation of the Pakistani military and named the Pakistani army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
“If you are breaking into our homes to attack us, well, we will not enter your houses because you have tanks and guns, but we can explain to the people, the inside of you,” Mir said of the protests.
In 2014, Mir survived an attack by unknown individuals shortly after completing his program, which focuses on military abuses in southwestern Balochistan.
“Space is running low. Instead, I would rather finish it. You are not even allowed to explain why you are not working, “said Iqbal Khattak, a representative of Reporters Without Border (RSF) in Pakistan and head of the Freedom Network business group, in response to Mir’s dismissal.
“I think we have been reassured that the government and the government are pushing for more independence in the media.”
Mr Khattak said his threats to journalists mainly affected those who predicted government and the military.
“Journalists who oppose state law are under pressure, and those who say ‘everything is fine’, have nothing to say about their safety and security.”
Participation in ISI
Toor, who attacked him on Wednesday, said a police report said one of his victims identified himself as an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s largest law firm.
On Saturday, the Pakistani government described the case as “a well-thought-out conspiracy”.
Pakistani troops have ruled the country directly for half of its 74-year history, with critics claiming it continues to dominate many parts of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government.
In 2019, an Al Jazeera Search found that journalists, editors and managers of media organizations across the country claim that their work is being monitored by the government and the military by sending their media organizations financially.
In July 2020, well-known TV journalist Matiullah Jan he was arrested from outside school in Islamabad. Jan said he was blindfolded, gagged, arrested and beaten by unknown individuals for 12 hours.
In April, senior journalist Absar Alam was shot in the abdomen while on his way to Islamabad. Alam survived the attack, and a lone assailant appeared on the security scene fleeing.
No one is arrested for any of these incidents.
In January, the BBC was forced to stop broadcasting a daily Urdu article because it “interfered” with its content.
The BBC has stopped broadcasting Urdu news via AAJ TV from Pakistan.
Details: https://t.co/57FQWSWtR5 pic.twitter.com/10TQkhNtJx– BBC News Chiudu (BCBBCUrdu) January 15, 2021
“Pakistani journalists, who have lived a healthier lifestyle, have become a major target in this country” deeply “, the praise of the military and the ISI… and the great improvements they are making in the care of civilians,” said journalists’ rights activists. RSF.
“The strength of this military force, which cannot stand alone in the media, has increased significantly since Imran Khan became prime minister in July 2018.”
Pakistan ranks ninth on the Global Impunity Index Committee, with at least 15 non-journalists.
In 2021, the country was named 145 out of 180 countries on the RSF’s World Press Freedom Index.
The government refuses to take part in attacks on journalists or the media, with Prime Minister Khan repeating claims that journalists in Pakistan are independent.
Pakistani Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry did not respond to a request from Al Jazeera for comment, but last week denied allegations of spying in the country, accusing journalists of making “attacks” and “moving to another country”.
