He said that the sit-ins of the PTI and PAT had inflicted huge losses on the country.He said that the government would not allow anyone to crush Geo and the Jang Group as the illegal closure of Geo and the continuation of attacks on the offices of Geo TV echoed in the joint sitting of both the houses of parliament.

Senator Mushahidullah Khan said that Mehmood Ghaznavi had not attacked the temple of Somnath as many times as the Geo offices had been attacked in recent days.“What Imran Khan is today it is just because of Geo, which painted him as a hero,” he said.

Senator Mushahidullah said Geo would rise again and the powers that be would also see its rise.He said, “Geo and the Jang group are the biggest media group of the country and have been rendering services for Pakistan for the last 70 years. All the institutions have committed mistakes but this did not mean that mistakes should never be pardoned. If anyone commits mistakes, they could be challenged through legal and constitutional means not through the use of force.”

Senator Mushahidullah Khan said that parliament had to play its role in support of Geo as it was not only an issue of Geo but also a national issue. ‘The offices of Geo are being stoned on a daily basis, the vehicles and newspapers of the Jang group are being burnt. We will not allow anyone to use force if anyone has made a mistake,” he added.

He said institutions should resolve those issues that were tasked to them. He said he was critical of Geo, as what Imran Khan was today was due to Geo which gave him wide coverage in the past.He said that the government would not allow anyone to crush Geo and the Jang Group.

He said issues could be resolved if every institution performed its duty. Senator Mushahidullah said that the sit-ins had inflicted $1 billion loss to the country. He said that the PAT chief had come to Pakistan as part of a great game. He said that Imran Khan and Dr Tahirul Qadri were following a secret agenda. After becoming part of a great game being followed in the world, they had succeeded in getting the Chinese president’s visit to Pakistan postponed.

He paid rich tributes to the people of Pakistan as they did not become part of the civil disobedience movement launched by Imran Khan.The PML-N Senator said that the abusive language used during the 34-day sit-ins had not been used in the 68-year history of the country.

He also paid homage to the opposition parties for siding with the government in saving democracy and the Constitution.He said that rigging and Model Town tragedy were not part of their agenda. He said Dr Qadri came to the federal capital in 2012 but he returned after minting a lot of money.

Senator Mushahidullah expressed his belief that conspiracies against democracy and parliament will die down and the so-called champions of revolution and independence will have to bite the dust.“Imran Khan and Dr Tahirul Qadri are carrying forward the hidden agenda of their foreign masters to ruin the country’s economy and are misguiding innocent people in the name of a ‘new Pakistan’ and a revolution,” he said.

Senator Mushahidullah Khan said the entire parliament is united for its supremacy and democracy despite all of political differences and it is a clear message for all those conspiring against parliament and democracy.He said despite the fact that dictators hanged or killed political leaders, they remained alive in the form of their followers and parties. “But dictators have been forgotten long ago,” he said.

He said today once again conspiracies are being hatched against parliament and democracy openly or secretly. “But the conspirators must know that they will fail. No one will be allowed to cast an evil eye on parliament and it will stay intact and continue to function,” he added.

He said, “Sit-ins and protests are an eyewash as there is a hidden agenda of these two leaders who have mistaken parliament for a cricket ground.”

The senator said if every institution of the country starts working within their constitutional jurisdiction, there will be no problem in the country. If columnists start politicking and politicians start writing articles and if other institutions start conspiring against democracy, it will worsen the situation, he said.

He said these so-called leaders should learn a lesson from history and understand that whenever any force conspired against democracy, parliament and politicians survived.

He alleged that Dr Qadri is inciting innocent people in the name of Model Town killing. “But I say that whenever a genuine investigation of that incident is held, Qadri himself will be found involved in the incident because it was part of the plan to derail democracy.”

He said, “People have rejected the demands of Imran Khan regarding non-payment of bills, civil disobedience and submission of remittances through Hundi and for this we salute Pakistanis living within the country and abroad.”

Mushahid said both Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri have received money for all this drama from their foreign masters and its plan was chalked out at secret meetings within the country and abroad.

He also objected to the language used at the sit-in and asked what message they are sending to the youth of this country. They are victims of their ambitions and are least bothered that they have caused billions of losses to the national economy.

He said their focus was to ruin the economy and hamper the visit of Chinese president wherein the agreements of billions of dollars were to be signed, he added.He said the political leadership deserves appreciation for showing unity for the sanctity and dignity of the parliament.

While expressing resentment over lingering and result-less negotiations among Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) and the government, Senator Saleh Shah said a tribal jirga could resolve the issue within a week.

Senator Shah said the issue of sit-ins should be resolved as soon as possible as country’s leadership and democracy were being disgraced by Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri.

Lauding patience and political acumen of Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and opposition to deal with sit-ins, he said all parties were unanimous to protect democracy and constitution.

Criticising PTI chairman Imran Khan for using derogatory language against political leaderships of the country, he said dirty talk must be avoided. “Government must take care of internally displaced persons (IDPs),” he said.

Abdul Rahim Mandokhel of Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) said the nation and political parties were united for protecting the constitution of the country. He said the parliament being the supreme body will protect the constitution as well as the rights of the people.

He rejected allegations of rigging in 2013 general elections and said the demands of those staging sit-ins for resignation of prime minister are not democratic and constitutional.

He said the army should not be dragged into politics as it has no links with the current political turmoil.

Rashid Godail of the MQM called for early resolution of current crisis saying it is adversely affecting the economy.He said Pakistan Army is engaged in war against terrorism and we should all stand behind it. He said more provinces should be created and local bodies system enforced for bringing prosperity in the lives of the people.

Ayaz Soomro of the PPP said attacks on the national institutions amount to attack on the whole nation.He said those having contradiction in the words and deeds cannot be the leaders of the poor people.

He said the conspiracies of protesting leaders against the constitution and the system stand exposed before the nation. He said PTI and PAT will get nothing from the sit-ins except failure and disappointment. He said negotiations should be continued with the two parties for amicable solution of the matter.

Disgruntled legislator of the PTI Nasir Khan Khattak said the House should pass a resolution to condemn those elements whose acts led to the postponement of the Chinese president’s visit. He said today China and India are writing a new chapter in their relations while Pakistan appears to be standing alone in the world.

He said the parliament should send a message through resolution that Pakistan values its relations with its old and time tested friend China and looks forward for the visit of the Chinese President.

During the debate, the parliamentarians continued expressing their support to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and dubbed Imran Khan and Dr Qadri conspirators against democracy.

Senator Saleh Shah criticised Imran for using derogatory language against the political leaderships of the country.He said “dirty talk” must be avoided. “Perhaps Imran wants to introduce a new leadership in his new Pakistan by discrediting the existing leadership,” he added.

Ayaz Soomro of the PPP said parliament stands with Prime Minister Nawaz and will not allow anyone to seek the resignations of the prime minister.Rasheed Godil of the MQM asked MPs to listen to what the dharna stagers were saying and to resolve the issue.

The News

“The government itself conspired to attack PTV,” Qadri said. He accused that PML-N lawmaker Marvi Memon and PTV managing director were involved in the entire trespassing and encroaching of the PTV headquarters building.

Addressing his workers, the PAT chief accused the rulers of attacking the state-run TV. He alleged that employees of PTV were also involved in the attack.

“Why 2,000 policemen were removed from the PTV headquarter? Qadri questioned. He went on to ask who closed four closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) of PTV.

“An engineer who works at PTV has put off air transmission of the television,” Qadri said while talking about the engineer whose image was published by various newspapers to identify the attackers.

The PAT chief claimed that the government was planning to launch a crackdown against the sit-in participants.

“We will retaliate and teach the ruling regime a good lesson if the law enforcement agencies will use force against the peaceful protestors,” Qadri cautioned.

Qadri said that had the PAT workers stormed the PTV building the outcome would have been a total chaos. He said his party did not intend to destabilise the state institutions.

Criticising prevalent VVIP culture in the country, Qadri asserted that the ruling regime had fostered a culture of VIPs.

“The residential accommodations of the rulers are better even to the forts and palaces of the monarchs.”

He accused the ruling regime for exploiting the taxpayer’s money for their personal benefit and pleasure.

Qadri alleged that respect for the ruling regime could be judged by the fact that “the flood affectees at Sukkar stopped the car of the Sindh chief minister from visiting the affected areas”. Qadri also said, “A lady in Jhang pelted her slippers at the Punjab chief minister… Revolution march has empowered the people to stand firm in front of rulers.”

About the accomplishment of his mission, the renowned scholar reiterated his stance that revolution was approaching and the incumbent regime would soon be thrown out.

“Revolution began in courts and a lot more is to be done now,” he added.

Daily Times

It is the second time that the Geo News TV building has been attacked in a fortnight by demonstrators of the Pakistan Tehrek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT). Demonstrators pelted stones at the building, breaking a number of windows and also vandalized vehicles of the media.

Following this week’s attack, the PFUJ held a rally outside the Geo News TV building in Islamabad against the continued harassment of Geo News journalists and staff. Demonstrators who have been protesting against the Pakistani Government since August 14 have repeatedly harassed Geo News staff and other journalists and media workers from other outlets.

On August 30, demonstrators attacked the office of Geo News TV in Islamabad, pelting it with stones. Some stick-wielding protestors reportedly also attacked the satellite van of Geo News as the staff in the building struggled to escape.

The PFUJ said: “The political parties like PTI and PAT are using derogatory language against Geo, which is a direct attack on journalists.”

The PFUJ demanded that the government should take notice of the continuous stone pelting incidents on Geo News TV building in the capital.

The IFJ and the PFUJ have expressed ongoing concerns over the escalation of incidents of violence against journalists in recent days. The IFJ issued letters to Prime Minister Nawaf Sharif, PTI leader Imran Khan and PAT leader Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri condemning the violence against journalists and media.

The IFJ said: “The repeated attacks on Geo News clearly show that the anti-government demonstrators are intolerant to the media’s role in reporting these events and are resorting to unjustifiable undemocratic acts. Importantly, the attacks on Geo represent an attack on Pakistan’s media as a whole.”

The IFJ calls for all journalists, regardless of where they are employed, to condemn these assaults in the strongest way and for the media to stand in solidarity against to defend their right to report.

The IFJ has condemned these attacks on Geo News and called on the government and the leaders of the PTI and PAT to provide sufficient security and respect for the media while the demonstrations continue.

International Federation of Journalists

According to press reports, protesters belonging to Pakistan Tehrek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) vandalised the premises of Geo TV, as well as Daily “The News” and Pakistan’s largest circulated Daily “Jang”. They smashed the windscreens of vehicles of staff parked there, and also damaged the security wall before entering the premises.

According to “The News” since the sit-ins of the PTI and PAT started in Islamabad on August 14, the team of Geo has been attacked many times. The attackers have struck at least 20 times during last one week at the Geo/Jang building and pelted stones, broken windows and damaged vehicles in its parking lot. A female reporter had also been threatened by some participants of the sit-in while another reporter’s mic was snatched during the coverage.

Afzal Butt, President of one faction of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) condemned the incident and said if the police failed to provide security, then journalists, themselves, will protect their colleagues. He said the journalists also have the right to seek apology from Imran Khan and Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri for the attack on the Geo News office and the harassment of journalists, workers and staff members of Geo News, The News and Jang.

Ameen Yousuf, General Secretary of the other faction of PFUJ also strongly condemned the incident and said such violent acts should be stopped and adequate security be provided to media.

Pakistan Press Foundation

They were also surprisingly familiar with the locations of key offices and the central newsroom and news studios located within the labyrinthine building of the state-broadcaster, which is a veritable maze for newcomers.

PTV officials told Dawn that the intruders also harassed station employees vandalised several offices on different floors.

A security official deputed at PTV Headquarters told Dawn around 9:30am, approximately half an hour before the station was stormed; a bearded man approached the security room adjacent to the building’s main gate and issued an ominous warning.

“Be ready. We are coming for you in a little while,” the security official quoted the unidentified man as having said.

“I thought he must’ve been some sort of over zealous protester, trying to harass us, the official said, adding that just after 10am, when hundreds of protesters stormed the building, he was forced to change his opinion.

Upon entering the premises, a team of individuals made straight for the MCR, where they asked technicians to first remove all news tickers that were relaying news of the state broadcaster’s occupation by protesters, at the time.

Following this, the men, who appeared to be from both PTI and PAT, asked them to cease transmission.

“A layman cannot possibly understand the technicalities of transmission so well; they knew exactly what they had to do,” an MCR technician told Dawn, adding that it was surprising that they managed to find the MCR with such ease.

In order to ensure that PTV went off the air, certain individuals among the occupying group asked the staff inside the broadcast facility to deactivate the satellite uplink, while keeping uplink and downlink monitors active, the MCR technician said.

“In my near-30 year career, this is the second time I’ve seen the army deployed at PTV Headquarters,” he said, referring to the coup staged by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf in October 1999.

“This time around, I don’t how long the army will state here, because their presence is felt to be necessary for as long as these anti-government sit-ins continue,” he said.

PTV World Controller Mohammad Owais Butt told Dawn that it was a stroke of good luck that after taking over the MCR, the protesters did not seek to come on-air and make a statement against the interests of the state.

“We were afraid that they might force us to air their own propaganda, but thankfully, they seemed content with interrupting our transmission,” he said.

DAWN

According to eyewitnesses, nearly 400 PTI and PAT workers stormed the PTV building, across the road from the main entrance to the Pakistan Secretariat. The attack came soon after demonstrators were repulsed from the secretariat compound.

But the occupying force was dispersed without incident by a contingent of army and Rangers personnel, who arrived on the scene within an hour of the state-TV being taken off-air.

Transmission was restored shortly after noon as the occupying force dispersed peacefully, shouting pro-army slogans and hugging military and paramilitary personnel who arrived at the scene.

This is the first time that PTV’s transmission went blank since October 12, 1999, when former military ruler retired General Pervez Musharraf took power in a bloodless coup after toppling the government of then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Eyewitnesses told Dawn the protesters were carrying PTI and PAT flags and shouting slogans in favour of Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri. PTV Senior Controller Asmatullah Niazi blamed the district administration for what he called their failure to protect the state broadcaster.

PTV employees had been facing a hard time, as their office was located right on the edge of the red zone and was at the centre of the anti-government protests, which have raged on in the capital for over two weeks now.

“Despite the army’s deployment in aid of civil authorities, how could the administration forget to deploy security around this key national institution,” he said.

Mr Niazi said that PAT workers who stormed the building instructed staff manning the channel’s transmission to stop broadcasting “useless content” and asked them to broadcast speeches by Dr Tahirul Qadri.

DAWN

The working staff of Geo, The News and Jang faced the worst kind of fear and panic as PTI and PAT supporters continuously pelted stones at the Jang Building located on Fazl-e-Haq Road.

The windows of the offices in Islamabad were broken as stone were pelted by PTI and PAT supporters.

The Geo building was surrounded by PTI and PAT activists holding the flags of their parties.

The angry supporters of PTI and PAT were raising slogans against Geo and the Jang Group, as party workers were poured onto the scene.

PTI and PAT workers were trying to force the Geo staff to telecast news according to the wishes of Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri, as both the leaders wanted it to flash the news of the killing of a woman protester in teargas shelling. However, the news could not be confirmed from independent sources so Geo refused to telecast it. The mobs threatened the Geo staff that if they did not do so, PTI and PAT workers would storm the Geo office immediately.

Not a single police official was present in front of the Geo, Jang and The News offices to control the situation while the PTI and PAT workers continued pelting stones at the building till the filing of this report.

The News

The media persons came under attack while they were covering heavy police teargas shelling on PTI and PAT activists who are continuing their protests police beat up the media persons ruthlessly and also damaged vehicles of seven media houses. The attack on media persons has widely been condemned across the country.

The injured media persons were Khuram Fayaz, Samma TV cameraman; Ajab Khan, Samma TV cameraman; Awais Qazi, Samma TV cameraman; Atif Yousuf, Waqt TV cameraman; Imran Iqbal, Waqt TV cameraman; Mohammad Zahid, Waqt TV DSNG operator; Jameel Kiyani, Waqt TV driver; Essa Naqvi, Dunya TV reporter; Asad Ayub, Dunya TV reporter; Adnan Dunya TV DSNG Engineer; Anjum Fatemi, Dunya TV cameraman; Asif Abdullah, ARY News cameraman; Iqbal Zaib, ARY News cameraman; Kashif Abbasi, DawnNews cameraman; Naushad Abbasi, DawnNews cameraman; Yasir Malik, DawnNews reporter; Samar Abbas, DawnNews reporter; Ashfaq Hussain, DawnNews cameraman; Imran Chaudhry, DawnNews cameraman; Mansoor Ahmed, DawnNews cameraman; Amir Alam, Express News cameraman, Majid Shah, Express News cameraman, Usman Afzal, Express News Cameraman; Rana Tariq, Aaj TV reporters; Haroon Khursheed, Aaj TV cameraman; and Ghulam Ali, Aaj TV cameraman.

Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Pakistan Broadcasters Association, Hyderabad Union of Journalists, Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalists, National Press Club and various other journalist organizations have strongly condemned the incident and demanded action against the police.

On September 1, hundreds of activists of PTI and PAT barged into headquarters of state owned Pakistan Television (PTV). All entrances to PTV headquarters were occupied by protesters as they began to damage the property, working their way through the first, second and third floors. Wires were cut off as protesters entered the panel room.

They took over the programming control room after which transmission was taken off air temporarily. However, the transmission was later restored after the army intervened and expelled the protesters from the PTV building.

The attacks on Sunday and Monday followed attacks on 12 media workers and on media houses in since the start of the protests by PIT and PAT on August 14.

Pakistan Press Foundation

But as protesters surged forward for the umpteenth time, pelting police with stones and whatever they could lay their hands on, fresh orders made their way to the uniformed contingents of policemen deployed at the venue.

“I was standing on the sidelines, filming the protesters being beaten up when I heard the cry ‘media walan nu maro’ (beat the media people),” Samaa cameraman Khurram Fayyaz told Dawn.

Khurram was one of the first to be attacked. He recounted how, after an initial scuffle that saw his camera broken, he managed to escape in the direction of DSNG vans parked near D-Chowk.

At least 28 mediapersons bear the brunt of police high-handedness “I took refuge in a Dunya TV van, but the driver refused to help and the pursuing policemen caught up with me. They pulled me out of the van and let me have it,” he said as he showed us his back, which was black and blue with baton marks.

Khurram’s head was also bashed in and he was bleeding profusely as he was brought to Pims. He suffered a concussion and needed eight stitches to close the wound.

Samaa TV’s Ajab Khan was also attacked in the melee early on Saturday morning. He was shifted to the Polyclinic. When Dawn tried to reach him, a close friend answered his cellphone and said Ajab had been shifted to Shifa Hospital for a CT scan of his skull, which was badly injured.

Aamir Saeed Abbasi, a Samaa TV reporter, was beaten while trying to rescue fellow cameraman Awais Qazi. Qazi was also filming police beating protesters when he was attacked.

The Waqt TV team came directly in the line of teargas shelling. Cameramen Atif Yousaf and Imran Iqbal, DSNG operator Muhammad Zahid and their driver Jameel Kiyani all fainted from excessive teargas inhalation and only recovered hours later.

Over half a dozen DawnNews cameramen and reporters were also targeted by the police in their high-handed rampage against mediapersons. Hasnain Raza, Assignment Editor at DawnNews’ Islamabad desk, said cameraman Kashif Abbasi’s arm was broken; Noshad Abbasi was baton charged and also received injuries from teargas shells that hit him directly, while reporters Yasir Malik and Samar Abbas were also affected by tear gas.

“Ishfaque Hussain, who had been called in from the Peshawar bureau, was hit with plastic pellets and rubber bullets, while cameramen Imran Chaudhry and Mansoor Ahmed were also assaulted while covering police brutality against PTI and PAT supporters,” he said.

Express News’ Amir Alam, who was carrying his injured cameraman Majid Shah with one arm and flashing his press card with the other, was also attacked.

“The police just pelted us with stones,” he said. He was then beaten severely with batons and received injuries to the head, knee and hands. Express News cameraman Usman Afzal and driver Bakht Zameen were also hurt in clashes with police on Sunday.

Aaj TV’s Rana Tariq was lucky to escape following a near-deadly dose of teargas. But his fellow cameramen Haroon Khurshid and Ghulam Ali were not so lucky. They were surrounded by police and severely beaten as well.

ARY News cameramen Asif Abdullah and Iqbal Zeb and Dunya TV staffers Syed Essa Naqvi, Hassan Ayub, DSNG engineer Adnan and cameraman Anjum Fatemi were also injured in Sunday’s violence against journalists in the Red Zone.

Most of these mediapersons were rushed to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences on Sunday morning. Tahir Imran, a journalist who was at Pims when mediapersons were first brought to the hospital, offered some hope.

“One of the cameramen, Noshad, told me that he was rescued by an official of the Islamabad police, who pleaded with the men beating him to stop.”

DAWN

He was speaking at the party’s convention here on Saturday. Maulana Obaidullah, Maulana Hameed, Maulana Haider Wakeel and others were also present on the occasion.

Maulana Ibrahim Qasmi said the Jang Group had been playing a historical and objective role in the field of journalism. He said the ban on Geo TV and Jang Group were unjustified and should be lifted.

Regarding the sit-ins staged by the PTI and PAT activists, he said their rallies were generating immorality and vulgarity in the country.

“The leaders of PTI and PAT should have stood by the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of North Waziristan and the Pakistan Army at a time when the operation Zarb-e-Azb is still going on but they are following a foreign agenda,” he added.

He asked the federal government and Pakistan Army to remove the sit-ins forcibly if they were not ready to end protests willingly. He said that seeking resignation from the prime minister through undemocratic means was not acceptable to the nation and that’s why each and every political party was opposing them.

The News