ISLAMABAD: The new Pakistan government has disbanded a media regulator that many feared could be used to stifle dissent and institutionalize censorship, the country’s information minister announced, hours after taking oath of her office. 

Former prime minister Imran Khan’s government formed the Pakistan Media Development Authority (PMDA), which was to oversee films and monitor electronic, print and digital media, including Web TV, over-the-top content platforms and news websites, through an ordinance in May 2021. 

The regulator could impose fines of up to Rs250 million, or roughly $1.5 million, on Pakistani media outlets for violating rules. The move had rattled journalists and rights advocates who feared it could be used to gag free speech, stifle dissent and institutionalize censorship in the South Asian country. 

But the new government of PM Shehbaz Sharif has decided to do away with the controversial regulatory body. 

“Media went through a bleak period during the last four years as they were tortured, kidnapped, attacked, and censorships and black laws were used to suppress dissent,” Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said, while announcing the decision to disband the PMDA at a press briefing in Islamabad. 

“Work on Journalist Protection Bill and Right to Information Act will be beefed up and it will be made implementable soon,” she was quoted as saying by the state-run Radio Pakistan. 

The minister said her government would ensure the protection of journalists at every cost and zero tolerance would be shown to those trying to target media persons. 

She said the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016 would also be reviewed in consultation with all stakeholders, according to the report. 

In February, the Khan government had amended PECA through an ordinance to increase jail term for social media users convicted of disseminating “fake news” from two to five years. 

The ordinance had made it mandatory for courts to decide such cases within six months.