London [UK] May 4 (ANI): PoJK activist Amjad Ayub Mirza used World Press Freedom Day to spotlight restrictions on media freedom in Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB) and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), urging attention to the information challenges residents face.
Mirza said voices from these regions are frequently ignored and that people lack access to independent reporting and a range of viewpoints in local outlets. He asserted that opinion pages and editorial space seldom include perspectives that challenge the historical and political handling of Jammu and Kashmir.
He alleged the media environment is tightly controlled by Pakistan’s Press and Information Department (PID), a federal body in Islamabad, which he claimed operates under the influence of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing. Mirza said this control produces coverage that largely reflects pro-Pakistan narratives while marginalizing dissenting or alternative voices.
Mirza also warned of indirect censorship stemming from print media’s reliance on government advertising. He said newspapers in these areas depend heavily on ad revenue, and the risk of losing that income encourages self-censorship among editors and journalists.
Noting the limited presence of local electronic media, he pointed out that the near-absence of local television channels leaves print as the dominant source of information — a medium he accused of being used to shape narratives and suppress counter-arguments on PoJK-related issues.
Mirza called on the international community and media watchdogs to monitor press freedom in these territories and to support journalists and residents seeking unbiased, independent information. (ANI)
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