Protest demonstration held in Karachi demanding arrest of killers of journalist Nasrullah Gadani
The nexus of the state and the upper classes is trampling on democratic values
Staff Report
Karachi, Sindh
National Trade Union Federation Pakistan (NTUF), Home Based Women Workers Federation Pakistan (HBWWF), and other political, social, and human rights organizations jointly protested in front of Karachi Press Club on Sunday against the brutal killing of journalist Nasrullah Gadani and the atrocities of tribal chiefs and feudal lords.
The protest was attended and addressed by Nasir Mansoor ( NTUF) Saira Feroze Khoro (Home Based Women Workers Federation Pakistan), Aqib Hussain (Sherhi Awami Mahaz), Iqbal Abro (Textile Garments General Workers Union), Sara Khan Advocate, Ahsan Mehmood Advocate, Nooruddin Advocate, Shehzad Mughal (Alternate), Himat Ali Phalpoto (Textile Garments General Workers Union), Comrade Wahid Baloch.
Read: 5th journalist slain in Pakistan in 2024
Zehra Khan, General Secretary, of Home Based Women Workers Federation of Pakistan, said that the voices of journalists, intellectuals, and political activists were being silenced through violent methods. “In those unconstitutional, illegal, and anti-democratic acts, along with the state institutions, powerful elements of the society, landlords, and tribal chiefs were also involved.”
Read: Scrutinizing Feudalism in Sindh
“The criminal act of coercion against citizens continues unabated. The latest examples of that were the poet Ahmed Farhad, who was forcibly disappeared from Islamabad, and the young journalist Nasrullah Gadani, who was killed by Sardars in Mirpur Mathilo. Such incidents prove that the state and the upper classes have conspired against the people and were free from the grip of the law. Democracy and progressive values will be promoted only with the end of this unholy nexus.”
She added that a few days before the murder of journalist Nasrullah Gadani, the armed guards of the son of a tribal chief of Mirpur Mathelo fired on the journalist. A few days after that incident, Nasrullah Gadani was attacked by unknown assailants near Mirpur Mathelo in Ghotki, in which he was seriously injured and later died in Karachi. It is believed that the tribal chief involved in the murder of the young journalist had the full support of the Sindh government.
Comrade Khaliq Zadran, Awami Hawooq leader, said that the fault of the young journalist was that he was known for his bold reporting against the crimes of landlords, tribal chiefs and anti-people elements.
Saeed Baloch General Secretary of Pakistan Fisher-Folk Forum said that the killing of a journalist was not an isolated incident. Still, it was a continuation of the incidents in which journalist Jan Muhammad Maher and socio-environmental activist Nazim Jokhio were targeted last year. If the powerful elements involved in these heinous crimes were brought to justice, that kind of tragic tragedy could have been avoided.
Comrade Wahid Baloch, said that despite the passing of the Sindh Protection of Journalists and Other Media Practitioners Act 2021, journalists and media workers were losing their jobs as well as their lives, for which the government was directly responsible.
Read: Feudalism, Cruelties and Mayhems in Sindh
In the protest, they demanded that the killers of Nasrullah Gadani and other journalists, and political and social activists should be arrested; the lives of journalists and media workers should be protected by ensuring the implementation of the Law on the Protection of Journalists; the support of the tribal leader involved in the murder of young journalist Nasrullah Gadani should be abandoned and the process of giving shelter to such hostile and anti-democratic elements in political parties should be stopped.
They also demanded that all the missing citizens including poet Ahmed Farhad should be recovered and those involved in this heinous act should be punished; all media workers should be registered with Social Security & pension institutions; the Sindh government should allocate funds for the support of the family members of Nasrullah Gadani, especially the children.
The protesters demanded that the feudalism should be abolished and agricultural land should be distributed free of cost to the landless peasants under agricultural reforms so that democracy can be strengthened and social justice can be obtained.
Read: Pakistan cannot progress until the feudalism ends
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