JournalismPakistan.com | Published January 28, 2017
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ISLAMABAD - Dawn Saturday backed the ban on Amir Liaquat Hussain’s program Aisay Nahi Chalay Ga on BOL News, saying “the stream of invective and calumny spewed forth by Mr Liaquat is unprecedented.”
In its editorial ‘Pemra ban’, the paper maintained the ultra-right in Pakistan is unmistakably seeking to silence all appeals to reason and humanity by employing extremely dangerous tactics. “Pemra has done well to take notice of the defamatory language and then to stand firm against the channel for defying the ban.”
It also asked BOL to consider the impact on its credibility were it to continue with programming of such kind. However, the paper also seemed to caution against “open-ended, blanket ban apparently not preceded by any show-cause notice to the host” saying it “gives the impression of being arbitrary and can establish an unwelcome precedent in muzzling press freedom.”
The PEMRA ban on the program was however overturned by the Sindh High Court Friday.
The media regulator also served a show cause notice on BOL for defying the ban by airing the show, hours after the ban was imposed.
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