Islamabad - A writ petition was moved in the Islamabad High Court yesterday directing the concerned authorities to create awareness among the public about consequences of disclosing the identity of victims of rape.
Two men including Sharafat Ali Chaudhry and Umer Sajjad advocates filed the petition and cited secretaries of Federal Ministry of Information, Interior, Chairman PEMRA, Chairman PTA and chief secretaries of all the four provinces as respondents.
They stated in their petition that the recent rape of a minor girl in Kasur had become the grounds for their petition. They urged the IHC for directives to make sure that the disclosure of the victim’s identity is not only a violation of Electronic Media (Programs and Advertisements) Code of Conduct, 2015 but also a criminal offence.
The petitioners said that if the identity of the rape victim is disclosed without permission of the victim, parent, officer in charge of the police station or investigation officer or order of the court in writing, the act shall be liable for punishment up to three years imprisonment and fine under Section 376 A of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).
Citing Section 8 of the Electronic Media Code of Conduct, 2015 they adopted in the petition that under the section, the licensee (TV channels) shall ensure that extreme caution shall be exercised in handling themes, plots or scenes that depict sex offence and violence, including rape and other sexual assaults.
They mentioned subsection (6) of the Section 8 which provides that identity of any victim of rape, sexual abuse, terrorism or kidnapping or such victim’s family shall not be revealed without prior permission of the victim or victim’s guardian where victim is a minor.
Petitioners maintained that although professional and sensitive media coverage of case of victims can be helpful and in some cases even healing saying but if it is done in an insensitive, and voyeuristic manner it could increase the sufferings of the victim and her family resulting in irreparable emotional and psychological loss.
Therefore, they prayed to the court that Ministry of Information, PEMRA and PTA may be directed to take measures against those newspapers, TV channels and social media users who violate the law in addition to making sure that print and electronic media will not disclose identity of victim of rape, except as provided under law.
The petitioners further requested that the respondents may be directed to create awareness among the masses regarding laws on the subject in order to provide protection to the victims.
