Failure to Control Social Media Burdened Print Media; Several Newspaper Offices Closing, Says Abdul Rahim Zaitwal
QUETTA – Central General Secretary of Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party Abdul Rahim Zaitwal has said that the inability to regulate social media has resulted in an unfair burden being placed on print media, leading to the closure of several newspaper offices and bureau offices of major publications.
He made these remarks during a meeting with a delegation of the Balochistan Print Media led by Chairman Syed Anwar Shah at the party’s central secretariat.
The delegation highlighted the worsening crisis faced by print media in Balochistan, including restrictions on press freedom, suspension of government advertisements, and lack of government seriousness toward the survival of traditional media. They said that social media’s unverified content cannot replace factual reporting, yet print media is being penalized for broader regulatory failures.
They further stated that numerous media offices are shutting down, hundreds of employees are becoming unemployed, and media owners are struggling to pay salaries, utility bills, and printing costs.
Zaitwal said that restricting journalists, using laws such as PECA to limit expression, and pressuring media houses amount to an attack on constitutional freedoms. He added that censorship, legal cases against journalists, and restrictions on media and social media are against democratic principles.
He also alleged that electoral manipulation in the 2024 general elections undermined democratic representation and criticized what he described as governance failures, economic mismanagement, and worsening law and order in Balochistan.
He reiterated that his party, under the leadership of Mahmood Khan Achakzai, has always supported constitutional supremacy, democracy, and press freedom, and advocates for a federal system based on equality of all nationalities and parliamentary sovereignty.
Zaitwal said a truly democratic society requires a free and independent media that can act as the voice of the people and hold state institutions accountable. He called for the repeal of controversial laws such as PECA and demanded a secure working environment for journalists.
He assured full support for the legitimate demands of the Balochistan Print Media and said the party will stand with journalists at every stage of their struggle for press freedom.
