Pakistan moved up seven places in 2022 according to the annual World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

According to the index published to coincide with Press Freedom Day by the RSF, a non-profit that defends and promotes freedom of information, Pakistan now ranks 150 out of 180 countries, whereas it stood at 157 in the previous year\u2019s index.<\/p>\n

In its country profile, the RSF said \u201cunder the guise of protecting journalism, Pakistani law is used to censor any criticism\u201d of the powers that be and that the regulator Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) \u201cis concerned less with regulating the media sector than with regulating the content it publishes\u201d.<\/p>\n

It also mentioned that media houses, even privately owned, \u201care dependent on state sector ads and legal announcements for their funding, resulting in information ministries at the provincial and national levels threatening to withdraw advertising in order to influence editorial policy\u201d.<\/p>\n

The index said Pakistan \u201cis one of the world\u2019s deadliest countries for journalists, with three to four murders each year that are often linked to cases of corruption or illegal trafficking and which go completely unpunished\u201d.<\/p>\n

These findings were backed by the Pakistan Press Freedom Report prepared by the Freedom Network released on Monday, which said at least 140 cases of threats and attacks against journalists, media professionals and media organisations were reported in Pakistan over the past year, indicating an annual increase of over 60 per cent.<\/p>\n

India, on the other hand, dropped to 161 in the index compared to its 2022 ranking of 150, falling from \u201cproblematic\u201d to \u201cvery bad\u201d, thanks to \u201cmedia takeovers by oligarchs close to Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi\u201d.<\/p>\n

Norway and North Korea remain best and worst, respectively, for press freedom, according to the 21st annual report, which was published on World Press Freedom Day.<\/p>\n

Overall, the environment for journalists was rated as \u201cbad\u201d in 70 per cent of the 180 countries in the NGO\u2019s annual ranking, and \u201cgood\u201d in just eight countries.<\/p>\n

The worst countries in the new ranking, apart from North Korea, were Vietnam, \u201cwhich has almost completed its hunt of independent reporters and commentators,\u201d and China, \u201cthe world\u2019s biggest jailer of journalists\u201d.<\/p>\n

The United States fell three places to 45th, in part due to a deteriorating security situation for journalists.<\/p>\n

The biggest falls were seen in Peru (down 33 places to 110), Senegal (down 31 to 104) and Haiti (down 29 to 99th).<\/p>\n

Major improvement was seen in Brazil, up 18 to 92 thanks to the departure of far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.<\/p>\n

The Middle East and North Africa remain the most dangerous region for journalists, RSF said, while Europe remains the safest, though attacks on journalists in Germany saw it drop five places.<\/p>\n

The ranking is compiled by combining data on abuses committed against journalists with hundreds of surveys sent to journalists, academics and human rights activists.<\/p>\n

Source: Dawn<\/a><\/p>

The post Pakistan moves up 7 places in RSF\u2019s press freedom index<\/a> first appeared on Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Pakistan moved up seven places in 2022 according to the annual World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Wednesday. According to the index published to coincide with Press Freedom Day by the RSF, a non-profit that defends and promotes freedom of information, Pakistan now ranks 150 out of 180 countries, whereas [\u2026]<\/p>\n

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