'No progress in Saleem Shahzad murder probe'
04 February, 2012
LAHORE: The Saleem Shahzad Commission has failed to identify the culprits, and the government had failed to implement the commission's recommendations in true spirit, The Media Commission Pakistan and the South Asian Free Media Association said on Friday. A discussion was held in this regard at the South Asian Media Centre, in which both the organisations demanded the government and sensitive agencies to implement the Saleem Shahzad Commission's recommendations in true spirit to avoid such incidents in the future. The participants said that although the inquiry commission, headed by an honourable judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, had failed to identify the culprits behind the killing of journalist Saleem Shahzad, the recommendations of the commission were commendable. They said the commission had admitted that such incidents and the climate of fear they generated imperilled citizens' fundamental rights, such as right to life and freedom of information about public matters. The organisations believe the commission could not clear the well-orchestrated confusion and cover-ups regarding the murder despite receiving a lot of circumstantial evidence that could help at least set a clear direction for investigation. The failure of the commission to set a direction for the investigators would make it yet another blind murder case with no results whatsoever, SAFMA further comments on the commission's report, adding that it would encourage the perpetrators of such heinous crimes to continue with their "dirty tricks" and keep the journalists from fearlessly performing their job about the conflict or in conflict regions. The commission had also admitted in its report that "in present circumstances, investigating criminal allegations against security agencies is a rather a difficult task". The participants were of the view that the most productive and useful part of the commission's report was about its evaluation and recommendation regarding the systemic causes of tensions between intelligence agencies and the media. They said the commission had also observed that if a journalist made any contribution toward uncovering the pure and unadulterated truth, it should be viewed as a measure that "enhances national security, even when it embarrasses the country's reigning government and its institutions". The commission's observation in the missing persons' inquiry had also been quoted in SAFMA's report, which said that such illegal detention by the agencies for an indefinite period would be "counterproductive and will bring a bad name to the country and the armed forces". SAFMA Secretary General Imtiaz Alam headed the discussion while human rights activist IA Rehman and Areej Zakriya were also present. End.
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