By Muhammad Najeeb
Islamabad, Nov 11 (IANS) After more than a week of clampdown following the declaration of emergency, the Pakistani electronic media has submitted a “humble” request to President Pervez Musharraf to allow the national television channels to operate.
More than 30 television channels, including international news channels, were put off air on Nov 3 after emergency was clamped. Except for state-run Pakistan television channels, no Pakistani channel is available through the cable.
When people started buying dish antennas to watch independent news channels, shops selling such antennas and digital receivers were stopped from selling the equipment. Dish antennas were also removed from commercial buildings and hotels.
The Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) has placed big advertisements in Sunday’s newspapers requesting Musharraf to allow the channels to operate. The advertisement is headlined, “A letter to General Pervez Musharraf”, and addresses him as “Honorable Mr. President”.
Though the letter apparently is from the “Employees of Pakistan Satellite Television Channels”, journalists working with TV channels, when contacted, expressed surprise over the advertisement and said the owners had not taken them into confidence before placing the ad.
The advertisement says: “We humbly request you to reconsider your decision to block satellite television transmission.” The closure of channels not only affects the industry, “it affects us, it affects our mothers, our sisters and our children. Hundreds of thousands of people’s lives are connected to this industry, please do not punish them,” it says.
The advertisement comes a day after the government ordered three journalists of Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper to leave the country within 72 hours because of the daily’s “foul and abusive language” against the Pakistani leadership.
“They used foul and abusive language against Pakistan and its leadership in an editorial published on Nov 9,” Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Tariq Azeem told reporters.
Musharraf is scheduled to address a press conference at his official residence in Islamabad Sunday afternoon. National and international media have been invited to attend.
According to sources close to the presidency, Musharraf is most likely to announce the schedule for lifting of emergency.