Digital journalist Kamran Dawar
Politically disturbed, financially ruined and socially disintegrated, Pakistan continues to witness the assassination of journalists with usual immunity from the Government and concerned authorities. The South Asian nation lost one more journalist to assailants on May 21 to count the fifth journo-casualties this year. This time the unidentified gunmen hit Kamran Dawar, a digital journalist based in Miramshah locality of North Waziristan under Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Kamran Dawar (35) faced the bullets in his native Tappi village, and the father of two minor daughters succumbed to injuries at a nearby hospital.
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Expressing utter dismay over the third Pakistani media person to be killed within this month, the Press Emblem Campaign (PEC), the Geneva-based global media safety and rights body, urged the Federal Government in Islamabad to take serious note of the development and book all the culprits under the law as early as possible. Last year, Pakistan lost journalists Imtiaz Baig, Ghulam Asghar Khand and Jan Mohammed Mahar, but no visible actions were taken by the authorities to deliver justice to the bereaved families.
“We condemn the murder of Kamran Dawar, who becomes the 48th journo-victims since January 1, 2024 around the world and fifth in Pakistan. Islamabad must probe into the killings of all journalists and punish the culprits so that they cannot enjoy immunity,” said Blaise Lempen, president of PEC, adding that PEC extends moral support to the local scribe’s body Miranshah Press Club in its fight for justice to the victim.
PEC’s South and South East Asia representative, Nava Thakuria, revealed that Kamran was very active on social media and regularly reported on pertinent social issues of his locality through his YouTube channel and Facebook news channel. Three months back, Kamran received threatening calls from unidentified personnel, and he even shared them with journalist friends. Prior to Kamran, Pakistan lost Mehar Ashfaq Siyal, Maulana Mohammad Siddique Mengal, Jam Saghir Ahmed Lar, and Tahira Nosheen Rana to assailants this year.
Within this period, Myanmar lost one scribe named Ko Myat Thu Tun to military atrocities. India witnessed the murder of television journalist Ashutosh Shrivastava on May 13. Ashutosh (45) was working for the nationalist channel Sudarshan News, and he was shot dead in the Jaunpur locality of Uttar Pradesh. Soon after the incident, the police arrested notorious cow smuggler Jamiruddin Qureshi from Mumbai in connection with the murder. Jamiruddin even escaped police custody when he was taken to UP by train. Later, however, the police re-arrested him from the Bhiwandi area of Maharashtra.
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