Journalists boycott Ghazni governor’s office

GHAZNI CITY (PAN): Journalists in southern Ghazni province on Monday announced a boycott of covering activities of the governor’s house, saying they were denied access to information and threatened by security forces.

The Journalists Union head in Ghazni and reporter with BBC, Asadullah Jalalzai, accused Governor Musa Khan Akbarzada of creating hurdles to journalists in performing their professional obligation. He alleged the governor was against of media development in Ghazni.

He said the provincial administration had no spokesman since Akbarzada took charge as governor four years ago. The governor has asked other departments to deny journalists access to information, Jalalzai continued.

He said when the Taliban released Kandahar lawmaker Fariba Kakar in Ghazni after three weeks in captivity, the provincial administration kept journalists in dark.

He claimed journalists were being harassed and insulted by security forces on a daily basis and warned if the governor did not resolve their problems, the journalists would resort to a lifetime boycott of covering all government activities.

The warning comes 10 days after intelligence officials thrashed and threatened with death reporters trying to cover a Taliban attack on the provincial reconstruction team’s compound.

Killid radio reporter Mohammad Arif Noori also complained against ill-treatment of journalist at the hands of security personnel and government officials. He said the most problems for journalists had been created by the governor.

He said journalists found it hard to confirm a report because the governor had no spokesman and he himself had never talked to reporters.

The journalists issued a statement that asked the provincial government to appoint an eligible person as the provincial spokesman and investigate incidents of violence against journalists.

It also called on the government to ensure journalists were treated well and allowed access to information and those responsible for mistreating them were brought to justice.

The journalists waned of a life-time boycott of covering government affairs if their demands fell on deaf ears.

ma

Visits: 7