By: Tariq Usmani / Special Analysis : Published by ANI
Every year on November 2nd, the "International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists" is observed across Pakistan and around the globe. This day serves as a stark reminder of how the soldiers of the pen are targeted, assassinated, abducted, and tortured worldwide just to suppress the voice of truth, while the perpetrators of these heinous crimes roam free from the grip of law. Pakistan ranks among the most dangerous countries in the world, where journalists continuously face grave perils in the line of duty.
Yet today, as the world observes this global day, Pakistani journalism is undergoing a dual and far more terrifying tragedy. On one hand is the external threat and the lingering fear of unpunished killers, while on the other hand is an internal storm of economic and intellectual decay—a crisis I had predicted exactly twenty-two years ago.
Over two decades ago, in March 2004, when electronic media was just finding its footing in Pakistan and digital or social media was nowhere in sight, I penned a column in the pages of this very newspaper titled: "For God's Sake! Save Us from Such a Death." Being primarily an investigative reporter, it was my professional hallmark to unearth the truth and maintain a deep, analytical gaze on emerging situations. Furthermore, through my deep-rooted association with journalistic politics for the past four decades and active role as a dynamic trade unionist, I possess a profound and comprehensive understanding of the working conditions of journalists, not just nationally but also at an international level. Guided by this vast national and global experience, I foresaw the horrifying situation that we face today. But alas! Neither the governments of the time nor our own journalistic institutions paid any heed to this timely awakening and investigative plea.
During that era, as an investigative journalist, I not only wrote the column but also personally warned the then-leadership of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) about the impending storm. I pleaded before them that if we did not immediately establish a robust code of ethics and a protective firewall against the oncoming digital wave, fake news, and the lack of professional training for reporters, this deluge would wash everything away. Regrettably, our journalistic organization at the time gave no attention to this highly critical matter. What was the consequence? In the years that followed, not only did the standard of journalism plummet, but the historic PFUJ—which had fought tirelessly for the rights of working journalists—itself fell prey to internal rifts, fracturing into divided factions.
The ultimate price of this organizational breakdown and journalistic division is being paid today by the ordinary, honest media worker. The threats of fake news, falsehood, and sensationalism that I warned of twenty-two years ago have now completely swallowed our media sector. Genuine news has been replaced by "clickbait" and the monetization of "views." Truth stands orphaned, while the business of sensationalism is at its peak. Emerging from this intellectual decline is the greatest and most horrifying human tragedy: the current plight and working conditions of our journalists and media workers.
On this International Day to End Impunity, where we remember the journalists who fell victim to bullets, we must also not forget those unsung martyrs falling victim to economic terrorism. Today, thousands of workers of the pen—reporters, sub-editors, and technical staff—are sinking into the quicksand of unemployment, with no one to look after them. Governments look away, divided journalistic unions offer no aid, and media house owners remain entirely indifferent. Everyone has been left helpless. The issue is no longer just about losing a job; it has become a battle for survival. Driven by extreme unemployment, starvation, and mental agony, several of our proud journalist brothers have already lost their lives, dying untimely deaths. Hundreds of media workers are severely ill due to unemployment, lacking the money even for basic medical treatment or medicines, left to languish helplessly in the cold wards of hospitals.
I had concluded my 2004 column with these words: "If arrangements are not made for the training of working journalists, no one will be able to save the dignity and values of national journalism in the coming years… journalism will suffer an untimely death." Today, as an investigative reporter, my heart bleeds rather than takes pride in seeing my prediction come true; if only the leadership of that time had listened to my voice. Today, Pakistani journalism is indeed dying an untimely death on our screens every day, while its protectors are breathing their last on the streets.
We will only earn the right to observe this global day of November 2nd when we hold accountable both the external elements oppressing journalists and their economic murderers. If the state, PEMRA, major media houses, and all factions of the PFUJ do not rise above their personal interests and politics to take emergency measures for these unemployed, ill, and suffering journalists, this entire profession will be buried forever. For God's sake! Save journalism and the human beings attached to it from this horrific economic, physical, and intellectual death before it is too late!
