Peshawar    -  Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI) organised a three-day training on ‘Safety, Digital Security and Psychosocial Support’ for journalists in collaboration with European Union (EU). 

The training workshop was attended by male and female journalists from various districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including the newly merged ones. The workshop consisted of various activities in order to benefit the media workers and journalists. It was, further, elaborated that 1387 journalists have been killed all over the world since 1992, out of which 61 belong to Pakistan including editor PPI Islamabad Malik Muhammad Ismail Khan, Wali Khan Babar and others. Article 19 of the Constitution of Pakistan provides freedom of expression to all citizens within the ambit of law. Similarly, according to Article 19-A of the Constitution, access to information is a fundamental right of every citizen, based on this, effective Right to Information laws have been enacted in the federal capital and the three provinces. While Balochistan Freedom of Access to Information Act (FOI Act 2005) is inconsistent with the contemporary democratic norms & principles. It is the need of the hour to repeal this law and replace it with more robust and citizens’ friendly right of access to information law on the same pattern as enacted in other three provinces and the centre. By utilising this law, journalists will be able to access the required information easily and deliver news based on objectivity. 

During the training session it also came to the forefront that journalists, who are working on crimes, political and corruption beats, are more exposed to risky situation. Pakistan is reported as one of the most dangerous countries for journalism in the world, and it is considered that journalism is one of the most dangerous professions in Pakistan. Media organisations and newspapers, with limited resources, cannot provide adequate protection training and security to journalists and freelancers. 

The protection and impunity in crimes against journalists need immediate attention of the government. Immediate and effective legislation is also needed to protect journalists to maintain the sanctity of this noble profession. 

In view of these circumstances, CPDI launched the project ‘Civil Society for Independent Media and Expression (CIME)’ with the financial support of the European Union in order to ensure freedom of expression within the limits of the constitution and prioritise journalists’ safety training for the purpose. The training duration is three days which will be conducted in all the major cities of the country in phases. The first training of the series of training was delivered in Islamabad, the second in Lahore while the third one concluded in Peshawar on Saturday, after awarding certificates of completion to the participants. Seven more training sessions of the same nature will be held in the year 2021.