Chairman Senate Raza Rabbani on Monday said that attack on journalists is an attack on the freedom of expression, saying the Parliament would not tolerate any curbs on the media. In an unprecedented move to express solidarity with the journalist community after a reporter of a local newspaper was attacked in the federal capital last week, the House suspended proceedings for five minutes on the demands of the protesting journalists.
"The attack on the local journalist is an attack on the freedom of expression. The Parliament will not tolerate any type of curb or any attempt to gag media. The Parliament and political forces have waged a struggle along with media on the roads for freedom of expression and democracy and have sacrificed blood," Rabbani said.
He contended that as there were safeguards for the supremacy and sovereignty of the Parliament, they on the same pattern are for media. He asked the House Standing Committee on Interior to investigate the attack on the local journalist and report to the house within 20 days. Similarly, the chairman Senate called on the government to expedite work on the pending bill on safety and protection of journalists and table it either in the Senate or the National Assembly within a month.
Earlier, the Senate passed "The Pakistan Bait-ul-Maal (Amendment) Bill, 2017". The bill, moved by PPP Senator Karim Ahmed Khawaja, provides to amend the Pakistan Bait-ul-Maal Act, 1991. He moved the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill 2017 to amend the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 in the Senate for adoption, demanding an end to punishment for attempted suicide.
However, the Senate chairman deferred the bill saying it could not be passed without the consent of the Council of Islamic Ideology. Senator Khawaja argued that people who try to take their own lives need help, not punishment. The PPP senator said those who attempt to commit suicide must be sent to rehabilitation centers so they can receive treatment, instead of being sent to prison. PPP Senator Rehman Malik also supported the bill, observing that people attempt suicide due to depression and they need treatment.
Senator Taj Haider, on the other hand, declared that the reason people attempt to commit suicide is that the state has failed to give them hope. "We need to change the environment which makes our young generation think that suicide is their only option," he said. Deputy Chairman Senate Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri also argued that the matter should not be disposed of in haste and be seen in the context of the Holy Quran and Sunnah.
However, Law Minister Zahid Hamid said the issue is sensitive and emphasized since suicide was forbidden in Islam, the bill must be sent to the relevant committee for debate before the Senate passes it. Rabbani then deferred the bill for further deliberations.