ROD News: Civil Society protest against the curb on media & express solidarity with the media

Monday, November 19, 2007

Civil Society protest against the curb on media & express solidarity with the media

Written by: Jawad Mazhar (ROD)

Sargodha, Pakistan, Nov 19^th: “ We are protesting against the restrictions on media, and to express our concern and solidarity with the Pakistani media”, said Chairman of Taangh Wasaib Organization (TWO), Dr Muhammad Ahmad Khan, a leading rights organization in Pakistan, he added “ Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) is not the suitable solution of the present political turmoil in Pakistan”. He was addressing to press conference at Press Club Sargodha, where large number of activists of civil society had flocked up to hold an effective and peaceful protest against the promulgation of the State of Emergency in Pakistan.

Talking to ROD General Secretary of TWO, Ms Rubina Feroze Bhatti expressed her concern for the media and present atrocities against the humankind in the name of Emergency. Ms Bhatti maintained that we want to see autonomous judiciary, re-instatement of the constitution of 1973, obliteration of the State of Emergency in the country and Independent Parliament. Replying to an other question General Secretary of Taangh Wasaib Organization maintained that all the lawyers, rights activists, judges and media persons implicated in fabricated cases should be released and cases lodged against them must be retracted, immediately.

She also said that government should unconfined those Pedagogues who were arrested during the protests against curbs on the media and such fake cases against them should be rescinded.

Expressing solidarity with the Media Ms Rubina Feroze Bhatti the General Secretary of TWO assured Sargodha Press Club representatives Malik Moazzam and Rana Muhammad Afzal Hanif to continue their endeavor until the lifting of bar on media.

Mr Mumtaz Arif a leading journalist said that we are not afraid of Baton charge and detention instead we will keep struggling for the freedom of media till our last breath.

Addressing the occasion Malik Moazzam, spokesman President of Sargodha Press Club, said that we should forge unity in our ranks.

Advocate Shahid Nazir Khan coordinator District Advocacy Network (DAN) said that Pakistani people are aware of their rights, and an army general (Pervaiz Musharraf) cannot usurp their rights, among the slogans being chanted by the protesters at the top of their voices. He urged that government should lift emergency immediately.

Malik Ehsan Ullah said that we are with the Pakistani media and keep trying hard for the abolition of emergency.

Representatives of the Media were presented bunch of roses by the Chief of TWO Dr Muhammad Ahmad Khan and Chief of Rays of Development Organization (ROD) Ferhan Mazher as a token of solidarity with the media.

After the Press Conference the protesters staged sitting in front of the Press Club Sargodha for one hour and chanted slogans against the State of Emergency at the top of their lungs. Their Slogans included

“Live and let others live”,

“Liberate the Judiciary”,

“Allow News Channels to transmit their programs”.

The whole Pakistani national observed today Nov 19^th as Black day as government has put restrictions on the media. Protests were launched in favor of Geo TV network and against the ban on Geo and emergency in the country. ROD & TWO plans to protest against the Detention of Lawyers and State of Emergency on Nov 21^st at Sargodha Bar Council, to express solidarity with lawyers and Judiciary.

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An introduction to Rays of Development Organization

Vision

Rays of Development Organization (ROD) loves and respects every human being as loved and respected by God, regardless of their color, creed, sect, race, gender or dialect. It speaks up for those who can not speak for themselves.

Rays of Development Organization wishes to build a society with Justice, Peace, harmony, health & education for all, democracy without any sort of discrimination, happy and healthy people enjoying equal rights and greener mother earth.

Ambitions of the ROD

It is Rays of Development’s utmost effort to facilitate, educate and forge understanding among the underprivileged and uncared residents of the most neglected, undeveloped and far off bucolic areas, about;

Health care
Education
Rights of Women and Children
Interfaith peace and harmony
Protecting the environment

Moreover

1) ROD highlights violation of human rights and atrocities in the local, national and international media. ROD points out muggers and tries to eradicate the motives/elements behind such atrocities, through peaceful means.

2) Rays of Development Organization conducts seminars, symposia, dialogues, lectures, rallies, walks and study circles to evoke awareness

about the human rights and social issues at the grass root level in the society.

3) As majority of the Pakistani people are illiterate, therefore Street theater is one of the most successful techniques implemented by ROD to convey messages of mass interest very easily and effectively such as protection of women and children’s rights.

Registration

Rays of Development Organization is a registered non-government, non-political, no-religious charitable organization. Its registration number is 243 under Societies’ Act 1860, since Dec. 2006.

Area of work

Pakistan is a developing country with four provinces namely Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and North West Frontier province (NWFP), a huge majority of the Pakistani populace live in villages. Residents of these villages and ghettos are illiterate and they depend entirely on the crop growing for the bread and butter of their families. The wages of these villagers are very, very low (equivalent or less than 1.5 $) and most often in the form of fruits, vegetables or wheat. For this reason they are in an appalling socio-economic condition. Unlike the land lords or elite of the country, they are incapable of

educating their children or providing better facilities to themselves or their children.

Thus the lack of education, consciousness and prosperity, consequences in to the terrorism, usage of drugs, violation of the rights and abuse of women, interfaith intolerance, child abuse and labor, exploitation and usurping the privileges of common man, ignorance about environment and health.

Rays of Development Organization has accepted the challenge and it has been operating in the most rustic and remote areas of Pakistan. At present ROD is focused in the villages, slums and other backward localities.

Area of Operation

ROD has reached to these places and conducted seminars, rallies, study circles, street theater plays and media coverage. Hitherto, ROD has worked hard pertaining to the protection of women’s rights, civil liberties, health care, vocational training, children’s rights and reduction/prevention of drugs.

In the future ROD plans to keep up and expand its efforts in the best interest of deprived humankind. ROD desires to eliminate all sorts of discrimination on the basis of gender, religion, sect, race, language, social status or color. ROD is significantly toiling to establish educational & vocational training centers in the future, so that people might be able to generate more income in a respectable manner. ROD wants to provide health facilities to every individual, living any where in Pakistan and wishes to see a better and greener mother earth in the future.

ROD News

Monday, November 19, 2007

Civil Society protest against the curb on media & express solidarity with the media

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