CPJ urges Pakistani Authorities to Stop Harassment of Journalists Ahmad Noorani and Shahid Aslam
Pakistani journalists Ahmad Noorani and Shahid Aslam are facing undue harassment, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which has called on the country's authorities to stop interfering in their work.
In May, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) of Pakistan named the journalists in an investigative report, accusing them of illegally obtaining tax records for Qamar Javed Bajwa, a former army chief, and his family. Three officials from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) were also implicated.
The allegations stem from a November 2022 article published on the independent news website Fact Focus by Noorani, who is currently based in the US. The article discussed the assets of Bajwa and his family, leading to a temporary block on domestic access to the website.
The FIA has labelled Noorani a “proclaimed offender” and is reportedly making efforts to arrest him. Noorani stated that no court summons or arrest warrant had been sent to his address in Pakistan.
Simultaneously, the FIA accused Shahid Aslam, a freelance journalist, of bribing FBR officials to obtain the tax data. Aslam, who previously worked for the privately owned broadcaster BOL News, has rejected all accusations. He is due to appear in court on July 19, where the charges against him and the three FBR officials will be considered.
CPJ's Asia program coordinator, Beh Lih Yi, stated, "Pakistani authorities targeting exiled journalist Ahmad Noorani following his reporting on the tax records of Pakistan’s former army chief and his family is a clear intimidation and threat to press freedom."
Noorani has been the subject of intimidation tactics before, surviving a near-fatal attack in 2017 in Islamabad. No one has been held accountable for the attack, and according to Noorani, authorities did not employ geo-fencing to identify the perpetrators. In 2020, while in exile, he also received death threats in retaliation for his critical reporting on another retired army general.
CPJ has called on the FIA to cease any investigation into Noorani and Aslam and return the electronic devices seized from Aslam during his arrest. As of the publication of this report, there has been no response from the FIA.
In response to this situation, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan posted a statement on Twitter on June 10, stating that the declaration of Noorani as a proclaimed offender in the case was “disproportionate” and urged the Islamabad High Court to take notice of the case and grant relief to the journalist.