CPJ calls for probe into murder of Pakistani journalist

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent watchdog body, has called on Pakistani authorities to launch an immediate investigation into the targeted murder of veteran Pakistani journalist Malik Mumtaz, who was shot dead in Miranshah on Wednesday.

“The death of a veteran journalist such as Malik Mumtaz must not go uninvestigated and unexplained,” Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asia programme coordinator, said in a statement.
“CPJ joins with Pakistani journalists in calling for a full investigation into this murder as a first step in reversing the perfect impunity with which the deaths of journalists are treated in the country.”
CPJ noted that no convictions of killers of journalists in Pakistan have taken place in the last 10 years. With 19 unsolved cases, it said, Pakistan’s record of impunity has worsened considerably in recent years.
The country ranks as the 10th worst on CPJ’s global Impunity Index.
Malik Mumtaz had worked for several mainstream news outlets and had recently been elected president of the regional press club, news reports said.

Early news accounts reported that unidentified men in a car with tinted windows opened fire on Mumtaz, as he drove to his home in Miran Shah, in the main city of North Waziristan. No further details on the murder were reported.

Mumtaz, a journalist for more than 20 years, had worked for Geo News television and the daily News International in both English and Urdu, news reports said.

His most recent print stories included coverage of the general violence in North Waziristan and a report on the controversial issue of a local polio vaccination program. Health workers administering polio vaccines were killed in December by militants who called the program a cover for intelligence gathering activities, news reports said.

Mumtaz’s colleagues said he had received threats for his reporting in the past. Journalists working in the FATA say they are often threatened by several sources–militant groups, criminal gangs involved in drug trafficking and arms dealing, and the Pakistani military and intelligence organizations.

A spokesman for Pakistani Taliban militants in the region denied responsibility for the murder and condemned the killing, news reports said. No group has taken responsibility for the attack.

There have been no convictions of killers of journalists in Pakistan in the last 10 years. CPJ research shows that, with 19 unsolved cases, Pakistan’s record of impunity has worsened considerably. The country ranks as the 10th worst on CPJ’s global Impunity Index.

“The death of a veteran journalist such as Malik Mumtaz must not go uninvestigated and unexplained,” said Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator. “CPJ joins with Pakistani journalists in calling for a full investigation into this murder as a first step in reversing the perfect impunity with which the deaths of journalists are treated in the country.”

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=38658

Posted by Tahir Khan on Feb 28 2013. Filed under Latest News, National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.