KARACHI: Journalist unions and press clubs across Pakistan’s Sindh on Thursday urged the government to take urgent action to ensure freedom of expression and that journalists remained safe in the province, citing a report that said 10 media workers have been killed in the past five years there. 

Representatives of press clubs and journalist unions from Sindh’s Sukkur, Khairpur, Hyderabad and Karachi cities attended the launch of a special report, titled: “Journalism in the Shadow of Violence” at the Karachi Press Club. The report was launched by Pakistan-based media and development sector watchdog, Freedom Network. The event was organized by the Sindh chapter of the Pakistan Journalists Safety Coalition (PJSC). 

As per the report, 184 incidents of violence against journalists took place in Sindh between 2018 and 2023, whichincluded the killings of 10 journalists in the province. Freedom Network Executive Director Iqbal Khattak said the report described the current situation of media freedoms and journalists’ safety in Sindh.

“Sindh continues to remain one of the most concerning regions for the safety of journalists in Pakistan, even though the province has a special legislation to combat impunity in crimes against journalists,” Khattak said, according to a press release by the PJSC. 

President of the PJSC’s Sindh chapter, Amir Lateef, said the targeting of journalists in the province has increased alarmingly, especially in northern Sindh, which has witnessed a disturbing rise in physical attacks against journalists.

“The issue is that the state is not supporting journalists,” Lateef said. “We will use the report’s findings to lobby with government officials and policymakers to ensure that they support the journalist community against safety risks.”

Senior journalist Mazhar Abbas demanded media owners also be held accountable or the safety of their workers while Khan Muhammad, president of the Khairpur Press Club, said journalists in rural Sindh require support against legal and physical threats.

Imdad Buzdar, president of the Sukkur Press Club, called on journalists to unite for a constant struggle for their rights while Sajjad Khanzada, the Hyderabad Press Club’s president, said brazen attacks on journalists will continue until their perpetrators are brought to justice.

Khattak had earlier shared details of the report, the PJSC said, adding that it shows low-income backgrounds of critical journalists, the lack of enforcement of labor laws in the news industry and the lack of digital safety skills create pressures for local journalists. This, the PJSC said, makes them vulnerable to threats and forces them to take undue risks.