Senate passes Journalists and Media Professionals Bill
In addition, seven other bills were passed by the Senate in its meeting on Monday presided over by Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani. Saleem Mandviwalla from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) presented the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals (Amendment) Bill, 2022 that received support from both treasury and opposition sides.
'We support this bill. All the clauses of this bill have been thoroughly reviewed,' said opposition lawmaker Ali Zafar, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Parliamentary Leader in the Senate.
The bill seeks to amend the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act, 2021 with the insertion of some new sections including Section 20A.
'No person shall be permitted to use abusive, violent or intolerant behaviour with a journalist during performing his duty. However, any person who commits this offence shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years or with fine not exceeding three hundred thousand rupees or with both,' this Section reads.
Another newly inserted Section 20B reads that no person shall force a journalist to disclose any source of information which he received during performing his duty except under the prevailing law. 'However, any person who violates this Section shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or with fine not exceeding one hundred thousand rupees or with both,' it reads.
The Section 20C says that a journalist shall perform his duty independently without pressure of any person, group, organisation or department. 'However, any person who violates this Section shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or with fine not exceeding one hundred thousand rupees or with both.'
The Section 20E (1) provides that any police officer who does not comply with the provisions of this law in relation to protection of journalist or any other public officer who 'wilfully delays or hinders in providing or processing the information shall be punished with imprisonment of either description not less than two years and up to three years and a fine of not less than one hundred thousand and up to three hundred thousand.' The Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals (Amendment) Bill, 2022 also provides for the establishment of a commission for the protection of journalists and media professionals.
Meanwhile, seven other bills passed by the House were: Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils (Amendment) Bill, 2025, State-Owned Enterprises (Governance and Operations) (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Abandoned Properties (Management) (Amendment) Bill, 2024, National Institute of Health (Re-organisation) (Amend-ment) Bill, 2024, Islamabad Capital Territory Charities Registration, Regulation and Facilitation (Amendment) Bill, 2023, Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, and Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
The following bills were introduced in the House and referred to the relevant standing committees. They were Provincial Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2025, Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2025, National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2025, Prohibition of Smoking and Protection of Non-Smokers Health (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and Social Media (Age-Restricted Users) Bill, 2025.
The Senate was adjourned till Thursday.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
17 minutes ago
- Business Recorder
LHC reserves verdict on PBC-related plea
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on the maintainability of a petition challenging the proposed new eligibility criteria for candidates contesting the elections of Punjab Bar Council (PBC). The petitioner was filed by candidates in the PBC elections, Fahad Ikram Bhatti and Imran Fazal, against the proposed amendment to the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act 1973. Earlier, the court noted that no formal amendment had yet been made to the law and the bill had not been approved by the parliament. The court asked the petitioners how the petition could be considered maintainable in the absence of an enacted amendment. The petitioners' counsel asked the court to at least seek a report from the government on the matter. The court reserved its verdict on the maintainability of the petition. A Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice recently approved significant amendments to the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils (Amendment) Bill, including a candidate's eligibility requirement of enrollment as a high court advocate from five to 10 years besides the condition of having handled at least 30 individual cases. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Business Recorder
17 minutes ago
- Business Recorder
Proposed amendment on LGs: NA Secretariat asked to issue reminder to all parliamentary party leaders
ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary body on Tuesday directed the National Assembly Secretariat to issue a reminder to all parliamentary party leaders to submit their opinion on the proposed constitutional amendment aimed at strengthening local governments. The Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice, which met with MNA Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk in the chair, discussed 'The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2025' (Article 140-A) moved by MNA Muhammad Jawed Hanif Khan, seeking to make local government institutions more viable and effective in line with the aspirations of the people of Pakistan. The parliamentary body observed that, in compliance with its previous directions, letters were issued to the provincial governments as well as to the parliamentary leaders of all political parties, seeking their views regarding the proposed amendment in Article 140-A. However, the committee has so far not received a response of any parliamentary leader in this regard. The committee directed the secretariat to issue a reminder to all parliamentary leaders to submit their opinions as soon as possible to proceed further in the matter. The meeting also considered 'The Qanun-e-Shahadat (Amendment) Bill, 2025' moved by MNA Shazia Marri. During detailed deliberations, the mover informed the committee that, in light of the discussions held during the previous meeting, the proposed bill had been redrafted. The revised draft of the bill was placed before the parliamentary body for consideration, she said. The members of the committee observed that, since the bill now contained substantive amendments, it was not feasible to deliberate upon the revised draft without prior examination. Therefore, the committee decided to defer consideration of the bill till its next meeting to allow members sufficient time for a thorough review. The committee also considered the 'Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024' (Article 25) moved by MNA Nafeesa Shah and 'The Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2024' (Section 54-A) moved by MNA Sofia Saeed Shah but due to the non-availability of the movers, the committee decided to defer consideration of both bills to its next meeting, with the observation that no further deferment shall be granted. The committee decided that, in case of continued absence of the movers, the bills shall be taken up and decided upon in absentia. MNAs Zahra Wadood Fatemi, Kiran Haider, Syed Ibrar Ali Shah, Syed Naveed Qamar, Syed Hafeezuddin, Hassan Sabir, Ali Muhammad Khan, Umair Khan Niazi, Changaze Ahmec Khan, Sardar Muhammad Latif Khan Khosa, Aliya Kamran, Shazia Marri, Jawed Hanif Khan, and senior officials of Ministry of Law and Justice attended the meeting. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
7 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Social media and U-16s
Listen to article The Senate is considering a groundbreaking bill to ban social media access for children under 16, citing mental health risks, cyberbullying and predatory content. The bill would impose fines up to Rs5 million on non-compliant platforms and even jail time for adults aiding minors in setting up or using social media. But while safeguarding youth is a laudable goal, this proposal suffers from fatal flaws in enforcement and overreach, risking privacy and digital rights. Proponents rightly argue that social media exposes children to several harms, including anxiety and depression, vulnerability to exploitation and distraction from studies. The bill also aligns with global steps such as Australia's recent under-16 ban and the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, which mandates parental consent for minors to use several types of online services and products, including social media. The problem, however, is that the mechanics of age verification pose severe practical and ethical challenges. Requiring platforms like TikTok or Instagram to authenticate ages could force 16-year-olds to submit government IDs or biometric data. As seen in EU trials, such systems create honeypots for hackers and normalise surveillance. Meanwhile, Pakistan's own history of internet bans has made almost everyone familiar with VPNs. Tech-savvy teens will almost certainly find ways to circumvent age gates whenever they want. At the same time, PTA would need to audit millions of accounts — a herculean task for an agency already struggling with enforcing politicised censorship under PECA and related laws. The bill also overlooks nuances such as parental autonomy. Many argue that monitoring children's online activity should rest with families, not the state. Instead of unenforceable prohibitions, the government should invest in digital literacy programmes for schools and parents, including encouraging family rules for responsible social media use, and work with platforms and international partners to encourage platform accountability via transparent content moderation.
