Freedom of speech
‘If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter,’ said George Washington. Normative (liberal and religious) and empirical…
Not in the name of freedom of speech
The way the mainstream media spread fake news in reporting a Lahore High Court order pertaining to a case of repeated commission of contempt against higher judiciary should give a…
Freedom of speech versus freedom to insult
What triggered the attacks was Paris magazine's repeated publication of offensive cartoons of the Prophet (PBUH) of Islam. In 2006, it reprinted cartoons published by Danish daily Jyllands-Posten depicting the…
How was freedom won and lost?
Now that the first generation of Pakistanis is fading away, it is time to record our journey. The present generation that was born as free citizens to parents who were…
An inconvenient freedom
THIS Monday, Pakistan’s media regulator took aim at one of its top news channels and pulled the trigger. As of writing this, ARY News has reportedly been taken off air across the country. Representatives…
Can speech be free?
WHAT goes around comes around, they say. So when the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad was cobbled together, first to deny Benazir Bhutto’s government a clear majority back in the 1988 election…
Who’s afraid of free speech?
When they are not in power, they want no restrictions on media. But when they take charge, they make efforts to muzzle electronic, print and social media. That is the…
Protecting free speech
When Pakistan’s greatest war for freedom of expression was raging in the dark decade of General Ziaul Haq in the late 1970s, Ahfaz-ur-Rahman and Nasir Zaidi were at the forefront…
A freedom lost: Part – II
On December 13, 2023, Szabist Karachi organized an event to discuss the state of peasants’ rights in Sindh in 2022. While our mainstream media is nearly always wittering on about…
A freedom lost”: Part – I
Formulating laws and creating rules from above – without broader consultations – is not a good idea. Of course, you cannot consult criminals while legislating against them but other than…
