KARACHI: The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is holding a webinar on Pakistan’s shifting media landscape at 3:00 pm on Friday, July 30, 2021.
Prominent speakers from across Pakistan’s media landscape will identify how challenges can be tackled to create more dynamic and representative journalist unions and strengthen media rights.
The webinar, Freedom of Expression and the Role of Unions: Strengthening Journalists’ Rights and Working Conditions in Pakistan, will be based on the two research reports recently conducted by IFJ and its Pakistani partners, IRADA and Freedom Network.
Panellists will discuss the action plan and path forward for Pakistani journalist’s unions in light of these baseline studies conducted by IFJ in Pakistan. Community will discuss the key challenges and findings acquired from the reports, recommendations and an action plan. The panel will be moderated by senior journalist, Sabin Agha.
The panel include Adnan Rehmat, media development expert; Afia Salam, journalist, trainer and consultant on gender and labour; GM Jamali, President PFUJ; Harry Wall, Project manager, IFJ Asia-Pacific; Mazhar Abbass, senior journalist, Sabookh Syed, Chairman of DigiMap; and Tahira Abdullah, human rights defender.
Freedom Network’s report, Modernization and Reform, involved a rapid assessment of the key factors preventing media unions in Pakistan from accepting the growing number of young journalists, particularly digital and women media practitioners, as members. The report will be release during the meeting at 3pm PKT on July 30.
IRADA’s report, Decent Work in Pakistani Media: An Assessment of Labour Laws and the Impacts for Media Workers, diagnoses the problems of Pakistan’s legal framework and provides concrete recommendations for improving the legal framework. These two studies involved over 120 surveys, interviews and focus group discussions with journalists from legacy platforms as well as digital journalists.
In Pakistan’s shifting media landscape, technology is changing the nature of media employment and journalism practices. This session will delve into these new realities and a discussion will be held about the practices of journalists’ unions, press clubs and media workers’ associations in Pakistan.
The IFJ said: “We are pleased to address the challenges and opportunities described in IRADA and Freedom Network’s reports and to a forum where solutions to improve the media landscape in Pakistan can be discussed. It is essential that we continue to ensure the media is protected financially and physically and that content continues to be produced.”