Zardari blocks Geo, ARY, Royal TV Stations - shuts down websites
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PEMRA denies blocking telecast of some TV channels
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on Tuesday denied having any role in the blocking of transmissions of certain TV channels.
“Neither PEMRA nor the government had any role in the blockage of the transmission of any TV channel. All PEMRA licensed channels are being telecast across the country without any discrimination. PEMRA strongly believes in freedom of speech and expression and has been endeavoring towards this end without any prejudice or antagonism,” said a press statement issued by PEMRA.
“It has come to PEMRA’s knowledge that a few cable operators, namely World Call and Media Plus Communication (MPC) in Karachi and in other parts of the country are involved in partial discontinuation” of two private news channels, it said. The PEMRA statement added that the authority is making all-out efforts to restore transmissions of the aforementioned channels on a priority basis. staff report
more state lies!!!
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) on Tuesday denied having any role in the blocking of transmissions of certain TV channels.
“Neither PEMRA nor the government had any role in the blockage of the transmission of any TV channel. All PEMRA licensed channels are being telecast across the country without any discrimination. PEMRA strongly believes in freedom of speech and expression and has been endeavoring towards this end without any prejudice or antagonism,” said a press statement issued by PEMRA.
“It has come to PEMRA’s knowledge that a few cable operators, namely World Call and Media Plus Communication (MPC) in Karachi and in other parts of the country are involved in partial discontinuation” of two private news channels, it said. The PEMRA statement added that the authority is making all-out efforts to restore transmissions of the aforementioned channels on a priority basis. staff report
more state lies!!!
Ratus Ratus
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You guys do have all the fun..
Pakistani TV stations remain off the air during floods
New York, August 10, 2010--Pakistan's major news broadcasters ARY TV and GEO TV are off the air in Karachi and Sindh province for a third day since supporters of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of President Asif Ali Zardari have reportedly severed cable connections of the distributors that carry them. Demonstrations at the offices of the distributors and the stations, sometimes violent, continued today. Originally, the two stations were pulled off the air by the cable companies under pressure from party supporters on Saturday night.
Although the broadcasters were able to get back on air for a few hours today and are being carried in most other parts of the country, staff in both broadcasters' newsrooms told CPJ they do not expect to be able to broadcast in Karachi or Sindh in the coming days. Protests are widespread on both sides of the issue.
The shutdown has not been ordered by the government, the stations' staffers say. According to Mazhar Abbas, ARY's deputy news director, "This is the president's party taking the law into its own hands."
Abbas confirmed local news reports that cable companies that had defied the demonstrations and returned them to the air were hit with another wave of protesters on Sunday, and many of their distribution cables around the city were cut.
The PPP demonstrators have left behind written messages on the stations' external walls, accusing the owners of being anti-Pakistan and being allied with India and Israel, both considered arch foes by many Pakistanis. The allegations are dangerous accusations to make in politically violent Karachi.
Journalists have waged their own demonstrations in Karachi and elsewhere since Monday.
"This is Pakistani politics at its worst. While the country faces a national calamity and the outside world scrambles to offer its assistance, the Pakistan Peoples Party can find nothing better to do than to try to close down media and stifle criticism of President Zardari," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "We call on the government to take control of this deteriorating situation and ensure the broadcasters return to the air immediately."
The demonstrations against GEO and ARY started Saturday night in Karachi, with angry crowds demanding cable companies stop carrying the stations. They were angered by reports the two stations carried about a heckler throwing his shoes at Zardari at a meeting in England. Much of the country's media had been critical of the president's trip while the country is faced with the worst flooding it has experienced in years, but the heckling and shoe throwing incident--a particularly insulting gesture in Pakistani culture, which the official government news agency The Associated Press of Pakistan denied had occurred--appears to have angered the PPP leadership in what is the party's heartland.
The United Nations says 1,600 people have been killed and nearly 14 million affected in the disaster. More than a week ago, flooding hit the northwest of the country. Rivers running south have hit many parts of Punjab and Sindh--the center of the PPP's support.
August 10, 2010 6:14 PM ET
Pakistani TV stations remain off the air during floods - Committee to Protect Journalists
Pakistani TV stations remain off the air during floods
New York, August 10, 2010--Pakistan's major news broadcasters ARY TV and GEO TV are off the air in Karachi and Sindh province for a third day since supporters of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of President Asif Ali Zardari have reportedly severed cable connections of the distributors that carry them. Demonstrations at the offices of the distributors and the stations, sometimes violent, continued today. Originally, the two stations were pulled off the air by the cable companies under pressure from party supporters on Saturday night.
Although the broadcasters were able to get back on air for a few hours today and are being carried in most other parts of the country, staff in both broadcasters' newsrooms told CPJ they do not expect to be able to broadcast in Karachi or Sindh in the coming days. Protests are widespread on both sides of the issue.
The shutdown has not been ordered by the government, the stations' staffers say. According to Mazhar Abbas, ARY's deputy news director, "This is the president's party taking the law into its own hands."
Abbas confirmed local news reports that cable companies that had defied the demonstrations and returned them to the air were hit with another wave of protesters on Sunday, and many of their distribution cables around the city were cut.
The PPP demonstrators have left behind written messages on the stations' external walls, accusing the owners of being anti-Pakistan and being allied with India and Israel, both considered arch foes by many Pakistanis. The allegations are dangerous accusations to make in politically violent Karachi.
Journalists have waged their own demonstrations in Karachi and elsewhere since Monday.
"This is Pakistani politics at its worst. While the country faces a national calamity and the outside world scrambles to offer its assistance, the Pakistan Peoples Party can find nothing better to do than to try to close down media and stifle criticism of President Zardari," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "We call on the government to take control of this deteriorating situation and ensure the broadcasters return to the air immediately."
The demonstrations against GEO and ARY started Saturday night in Karachi, with angry crowds demanding cable companies stop carrying the stations. They were angered by reports the two stations carried about a heckler throwing his shoes at Zardari at a meeting in England. Much of the country's media had been critical of the president's trip while the country is faced with the worst flooding it has experienced in years, but the heckling and shoe throwing incident--a particularly insulting gesture in Pakistani culture, which the official government news agency The Associated Press of Pakistan denied had occurred--appears to have angered the PPP leadership in what is the party's heartland.
The United Nations says 1,600 people have been killed and nearly 14 million affected in the disaster. More than a week ago, flooding hit the northwest of the country. Rivers running south have hit many parts of Punjab and Sindh--the center of the PPP's support.
August 10, 2010 6:14 PM ET
Pakistani TV stations remain off the air during floods - Committee to Protect Journalists
junaid1
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On the direct order of Mr.10% percent (President), the transmission of the Geo News was blocked by cable operators in various parts of the country on Friday(), which drew flak from across the country.
The transmission was blocked in some parts of Karachi, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Quetta, Multan, Rawalakot, Muzaffarabad, Deepalpur, Sargodha, Nawabshah, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Dera Murad Jamali.
It was for the second time that the Geo News faced curbs at the hands of the rulers in a short span of two years, as in 2007 the then president Musharraf had blocked the transmission of the Geo News, which has become the voice for the freedom of the judiciary and rule of law in the country, for the same reason.
This time, Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik and Salmaan Taseer, who is himself the owner of a private TV channel, are in the forefront of the ban, advising to block the Geo News. With the suspension of the Geo transmission, people from various walks of life, who were deprived of their right to an independent source of information, strongly reacted to the government’s step and contacted the Geo offices for getting information about the development.
The ban on the Geo News was imposed in the wake of speculations that the man at presidency could attack the media, because he considered it the reason for public resentment against him. It was feared that he might take action for strangulating the media.
A few days ago, Federal Minister for Information() Sherry Rehman had made it clear that if such an action was taken, she would resign. The Geo News is not only the most popular channel in Pakistan() but it is also watched with great interest abroad.
According to reports, the places where the Geo News is being viewed, the cable operators have placed the channel at the tail end, so that it could be claimed that the transmission had not been banned. However, wherever it was put at the tail end, it was difficult for viewers to watch it due to technical reasons.
It was learnt that some senior members of the Geo News have been harassed and pressurised during the last few days to arrange their programmes according to the demands of the Presidency. Besides the Geo, other organisations of the Jang Group, including daily Jang and The News, have also been pressurised over news reports.
Political, public, intellectuals and major sections of the ruling PPP have strongly condemned the government’s step. Overseas Pakistanis say that the Geo News is an impartial source of getting information about Pakistan and curbs on it were tantamount to damaging the national interests.
According to sources, diplomats stationed in Pakistan have sent reports on curbs on the Geo News to their capitals. The diplomats say that the ban on an independent and impartial TV channel was a direct attack on the freedom of the press and democratic values.
The journalist community was also perturbed after learning about the ban on the Geo News and various journalist bodies have decided to raise their voice against it. The opposition members in the National Assembly have also announced to protest the ban in the house on Saturday(). They will be joined by the media men from the Press Gallery and later they would stage a protest.
Terming it an attack on the freedom of the press and democracy, the civil society representatives have also announced to participate in the protest. General Secretary Pakistan Muslim League-Q Mushahid Hussain said the Geo News was being punished for airing the truth. Talking() to Geo News, he said the government should not repeat the mistakes made in the past.
PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif, Tehrik-e-Insaf Chief Imran Khan and Senator Babar Ghauri condemned the blocking of the Geo News. Reporters Without Borders has also condemned the action which, it said, has brought back memories of the military rule in the country.
Representatives of the civil society visited the offices of the Geo News in Islamabad and other parts of the country and expressed solidarity with the Geo News management. The overseas Pakistanis would also stage protests in their respective countries in this regard.
Citizens say that the Geo News is serving the nation and presenting the correct picture of the situation with bravery, wherein the viewpoint of every party was included, which helps viewers to form their opinion. The Geo News was presenting its programmes according to national interests.
A member of the Geo told the Special Central Reporting Cell of the Jang that the policy of the Geo was based on national harmony and in the near past, whenever efforts were made to damage the country’s structure and the judiciary, the Geo was in the forefront to resist it. It proved that the Geo News policy was not based on opposition or favour to an individual, but it considered justice, democracy, human rights and high values as its mission, he said, adding that due to love for these values, the Geo News had also faced such a ban in the past. “We are neither political opponents of the present government nor our thinking is based on opposition to the present government.”
The ban once again proved that an independent judiciary is must for free press, which is an important element in the country’s development and social evolution. It is the main reason why sensible segments of the country and civil society are supporting these principles. These are the reasons which made the Geo News the most popular channel in Pakistan and abroad.
The Geo team member said that Benazir Bhutto had always stood for these principles. Benazir Bhutto was supporting the lawyers for an independent judiciary and now the media, civil society and other political parties are struggling for these objectives.
In the past, majority of people and political parties backed the objectives of the Geo, he said, adding that if someone avoided to openly support it, they still appreciated the way the Geo News was struggling for these principles, as quitting the struggle for justice and human rights would be never productive. The Geo News would also be the torchbearer of these principles.
He made it clear that despite all difficulties, the Geo News would stand firm and its voice for these principles, which are a must for the betterment of the masses and Pakistan, would never fade away.
Article source
The transmission was blocked in some parts of Karachi, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Quetta, Multan, Rawalakot, Muzaffarabad, Deepalpur, Sargodha, Nawabshah, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Dera Murad Jamali.
It was for the second time that the Geo News faced curbs at the hands of the rulers in a short span of two years, as in 2007 the then president Musharraf had blocked the transmission of the Geo News, which has become the voice for the freedom of the judiciary and rule of law in the country, for the same reason.
This time, Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik and Salmaan Taseer, who is himself the owner of a private TV channel, are in the forefront of the ban, advising to block the Geo News. With the suspension of the Geo transmission, people from various walks of life, who were deprived of their right to an independent source of information, strongly reacted to the government’s step and contacted the Geo offices for getting information about the development.
The ban on the Geo News was imposed in the wake of speculations that the man at presidency could attack the media, because he considered it the reason for public resentment against him. It was feared that he might take action for strangulating the media.
A few days ago, Federal Minister for Information() Sherry Rehman had made it clear that if such an action was taken, she would resign. The Geo News is not only the most popular channel in Pakistan() but it is also watched with great interest abroad.
According to reports, the places where the Geo News is being viewed, the cable operators have placed the channel at the tail end, so that it could be claimed that the transmission had not been banned. However, wherever it was put at the tail end, it was difficult for viewers to watch it due to technical reasons.
It was learnt that some senior members of the Geo News have been harassed and pressurised during the last few days to arrange their programmes according to the demands of the Presidency. Besides the Geo, other organisations of the Jang Group, including daily Jang and The News, have also been pressurised over news reports.
Political, public, intellectuals and major sections of the ruling PPP have strongly condemned the government’s step. Overseas Pakistanis say that the Geo News is an impartial source of getting information about Pakistan and curbs on it were tantamount to damaging the national interests.
According to sources, diplomats stationed in Pakistan have sent reports on curbs on the Geo News to their capitals. The diplomats say that the ban on an independent and impartial TV channel was a direct attack on the freedom of the press and democratic values.
The journalist community was also perturbed after learning about the ban on the Geo News and various journalist bodies have decided to raise their voice against it. The opposition members in the National Assembly have also announced to protest the ban in the house on Saturday(). They will be joined by the media men from the Press Gallery and later they would stage a protest.
Terming it an attack on the freedom of the press and democracy, the civil society representatives have also announced to participate in the protest. General Secretary Pakistan Muslim League-Q Mushahid Hussain said the Geo News was being punished for airing the truth. Talking() to Geo News, he said the government should not repeat the mistakes made in the past.
PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif, Tehrik-e-Insaf Chief Imran Khan and Senator Babar Ghauri condemned the blocking of the Geo News. Reporters Without Borders has also condemned the action which, it said, has brought back memories of the military rule in the country.
Representatives of the civil society visited the offices of the Geo News in Islamabad and other parts of the country and expressed solidarity with the Geo News management. The overseas Pakistanis would also stage protests in their respective countries in this regard.
Citizens say that the Geo News is serving the nation and presenting the correct picture of the situation with bravery, wherein the viewpoint of every party was included, which helps viewers to form their opinion. The Geo News was presenting its programmes according to national interests.
A member of the Geo told the Special Central Reporting Cell of the Jang that the policy of the Geo was based on national harmony and in the near past, whenever efforts were made to damage the country’s structure and the judiciary, the Geo was in the forefront to resist it. It proved that the Geo News policy was not based on opposition or favour to an individual, but it considered justice, democracy, human rights and high values as its mission, he said, adding that due to love for these values, the Geo News had also faced such a ban in the past. “We are neither political opponents of the present government nor our thinking is based on opposition to the present government.”
The ban once again proved that an independent judiciary is must for free press, which is an important element in the country’s development and social evolution. It is the main reason why sensible segments of the country and civil society are supporting these principles. These are the reasons which made the Geo News the most popular channel in Pakistan and abroad.
The Geo team member said that Benazir Bhutto had always stood for these principles. Benazir Bhutto was supporting the lawyers for an independent judiciary and now the media, civil society and other political parties are struggling for these objectives.
In the past, majority of people and political parties backed the objectives of the Geo, he said, adding that if someone avoided to openly support it, they still appreciated the way the Geo News was struggling for these principles, as quitting the struggle for justice and human rights would be never productive. The Geo News would also be the torchbearer of these principles.
He made it clear that despite all difficulties, the Geo News would stand firm and its voice for these principles, which are a must for the betterment of the masses and Pakistan, would never fade away.
Article source
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GentlemanObserver
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"Democracy is the best revenge"... Against who? Your own people no doubt!
AgNoStiC MuSliM
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When will this utterly incompetent fool (Zardari) learn? It is just a line of one blunder and corrupt autocratic action after another, one self-created crises after another. If its not reneging on promises to restore the judiciary, its disqualifying the Sharif brothers and dismissing the Punjab government If not that, then its dragging out the 18'th amendment, if not that, dragging out reforming the NAB, or implementing SC orders on the NRO, or politicizing the FIA to prevent investigations into corruption cases against PPP members, and if not that then refusing to implement SC orders on fake degrees, and defending forgers and liars.
And on top of that the apathy towards a crises that is said to dwarf the Tsunami, and Pakistan and Haitian earthquakes together, by traveling abroad and accomplishing little.
Please spare our country, resign and go live with your cronies in England and France where you belong.
And on top of that the apathy towards a crises that is said to dwarf the Tsunami, and Pakistan and Haitian earthquakes together, by traveling abroad and accomplishing little.
Please spare our country, resign and go live with your cronies in England and France where you belong.
sparklingway
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Jang Group is claiming a DDOS attack on their servers.
Only The News is not opening. Rest of them are fine.
Only The News is not opening. Rest of them are fine.
s90
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ARY also not opening here, their server don't respond.
s90
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Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote.
George Jean Nathan
Ab chakho apni karni ka maza!!!!!!!!
Well election system is flawed i guess, out of 160mil people only 17mil people casted their votes in '08 elections.
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