CPJ Index: Pakistan Becomes 9th Worst Country For Journalist

The Global Impunity Index 2020 has been released and Pakistan stands on the ninth position previously rising from eight where journalists are killed on the battlefield.

Furthermore, in the list, South Sudan, Somalia, Syria, and Iraq are on top of the list for being in war with extreme political stability.

Fraud, poor leadership, and lack of political will for the sound investigative processes are among the causes why nations like Pakistan, Mexico, and the Philippines have injustice, the CPJ study reveals.

The study of CPJ also reveals that there are around 15 pending murder cases in Pakistan and since 1992 around 61 journalists are not only attacked but also killed.

The case of Daniel Pearl was also mentioned in the report. Moreover, Sindh High Court on April 2 dismissed the murder convictions of four suspects for the 2002 killing of a Wall Street Journal reporter. The Global Impunity Index was not specifically influenced by this, the report noted, but it was a significant legal development.

Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was earlier condemned to death, was guilty of abducting Daniel Pearl and his sentence was reduced to seven years, which he had just served. The Pearl family and the Sindh common government bid, and the four men stayed detained until late September. It demonstrated the possibility of upturning even settled legal decisions.

Internationally, the study said, the number of reporters killed in retaliation for their work in 2019 was relatively low reported by CPJ.

The study says, “The reason is difficult to pinpoint, with self-censorship, the use of other tools to intimidate reporters, and the high profile nature of some recent cases potentially playing a role.”

According to the 2020 Global Impunity Index Afghanistan, Mexico, Philippines, Brazil, Pakistan, and Bangladesh stands on fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth respectively. The study also revealed that Bangladesh has around seven unresolved murder cases trailed by Russia and India with six and seventeen cases.