Opposition parties PPP and PML-N have explicitly stated their disagreement with the government’s newly proposed media ordinance. PPP senator Sherry Rehman and PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb tweeted their criticisms against the said ordinance.
The Pakistan Media Development Authority (PDMA) Ordinance 2021 is a plan for “Institutionalizing censorship”, Rehman said.
The new ordinance will force media outlets to “either become state mouthpieces or go under”, Rehman tweeted.
2/2There will be no onus on the Govt to provide warning or rationales for clampdowns. The law may even extend control to digital platforms. This is a plan for institutionalizing censorship. Media outlets will either become state mouthpieces or go under. #notogaglaws #notoPMDA
— SenatorSherryRehman (@sherryrehman) May 31, 2021
She also noted that there will be no onus on the government to provide warning or rationales for clampdowns and that the law may even extend control to digital platforms.
Marriyum Auragzeb, while criticizing the ordinance, said that it is a “draconian, authoritarian, repressive and punitive” instrument to “suppress constitutional freedom of expression of print media, electronic media and online citizen journalism.”
2/2 PMLN will not allow this usurping of constitutional rights at any cost. Stay tuned for my press conference on this crucial issue at 4:00 pm today.
— Marriyum Aurangzeb (@Marriyum_A) May 31, 2021
Provincial Culture Secretary Awami National Party Khadim Hussain also tweeted against the proposed ordinance. He posted ANP’s grievances against the bill.
Awami National Party rejects Pakistan Media Development Authority Ordnance 2021 as it considers this as another ploy to strangulate free media in Pakistan.
#ANPStandsWithFreeMedia pic.twitter.com/k61bcNIZVl— Khadim Hussain (@Khadimhussain4) May 29, 2021
The proposed media ordinance had previously been rejected by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), and the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC).
They had called it “draconian in scope and devastating in its impact on the constitutional principles and guarantees for freedom of expression, media freedoms, and the right to information as well as the profession of journalism” in a joint statement.”
The proposed ordinance suggests to repeal all current media related laws including The Press Council Ordinance 2002, The Press, Newspapers News Agencies and Books Registration Ordinance 2002, the Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Services Acts) 1973, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority Ordinance 2002 as amended by PEMRA Amendment Act 2007, and The Motion Pictures Ordinance 1979. All will be merged under PMDA.