Watchdog’s version of Elections 2013

Fakiha Hassan Rizvi
JournalismPakistan.com
May 13, 2013

LAHORE: The much coveted elections were conducted on the proposed date and with an overwhelming voter turnout. Ultimately, the lions roared, taking the leverage from the citadel of Punjab province and the bat swept prominently in the valleys of Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa. Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), except for the province of Sindh, limped in other parts of the country.

Amidst all the hassle of electioneering, counting of votes and the overall coverage of the ‘Election Day’, the role of media had been worthwhile and interesting at the same time. It was, perhaps, the only election in the political history of Pakistan, to which the media gave ample time and space. The pre-planned structure of General Elections, a relatively viable socio-political environment and the mushrooming of private television channels, together, contributed to lend the elections better media coverage.

On May 9, 2013, it was Geo TV that inaugurated an emotionally-charged election headquarters with Iqbal’s poem (Lab pai ati hai dua ban kai tamana mairee- My longing comes to my lips as a supplication of mine) with the entire Geo and Jang network vowing to give credible coverage of Elections 2013 to its viewers.

The entire set of Geo studio was transformed, in order to make the elections a special occasion for the nation. Both political analysts and public figures were invited to share their expert opinions about the elections. Such headquarters were the only one of its kind in the ‘mass media time line’ of Pakistan. This channel swung its coverage in favor of PTI the day Imran Khan fell and the nation commiserated with the captain. Such a U-turn must have been a surprise for supporters of PML-N who were enjoying favorable media coverage from Geo network days before the unfortunate incident overtook PTI’s chairman.

Dunya TV adopted an anti-PML-N stance right from the beginning of election campaign. It was apparently involved in a cut-throat competition with Geo network to declare unofficial results of the ‘vote-count’. The state television, PTV, took a proper route to announce unofficial results. Unlike the other private channels, the satellite based PTV didn’t announce results before the time for casting votes ended. Interestingly, during the bombardment of unofficial results, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) reminded the media outlets that they were violating the rules by declaring results before the polling closed.

However, the intriguing aspect was that electoral malpractices and cases of rigging were first reported through the social media. For instance, the most trending topics for the social information network, ‘Twitter’, were #NofearKhi and #DisqualifyMQM followed by #rigging and #Saad Rafiq.

The blast in NA-1, Peshawar that claimed the life of 11 people, was first reported by citizen journalists through websites like Facebook. The citizen journalists effectively used tools of communication like Internet and Smart phones to collect and report data. An interesting and healthy campaign, ‘iVoted’, published pictures of people with stained thumbs to show that Pakistanis were cognizant about their social obligation of casting votes.

It can be concluded that in the future, election coverage will be a battle between social media versus conventional media. On the other hand, watchdog’s version of Elections 2013, can be compared to a canvas, which every television channel wanted to stain first without paying much heed to rules and credibility.

 

May 11, 2013: The Big Day, Pakistanis line up in Polling Booths

I celebrate the inclusion of “true” multi-party system in the political arena of my country and the defeat of long standing notion that politics in Pakistan is mere partnership between individuals. It was the first ever vote of my life and I fulfilled my social obligation for Pakistan and not for individuals. 

Apart from the quantified data and other post-election alliances, some manifestations are healthy for the poltical structure of the country. I don’t promise accuracy or precision, but being a student of mass communication and Journalism this is what I have deduced:

• Regardless of who wins, PTI is the winner for bringing its leaders into National Assembly after 17 years of strenous efforts. 

• Apart from MQM and other who deliberately banked on murky electoral malpractices, all other political stakeholders and the Army as an institution deserves a laud for conducting the elections. 

• The role of citizens with regards to observation, following and participation in the elections has been unprecedented. 

• The nation might have called for change, however, it has proved today that it covets for ‘democracy’ and ‘pluralism’. 

• Media needs to be more vigilant than ever as reports about rigging and other untoward events were reported by the social media at a pace that left the mushroom-sized channels apart. 

 

Media Spin and Elections 2013

Fakiha Hassan Rizvi 
JournalismPakistan.com
May 06, 2013

LAHORE: For the first time in the political history of Pakistan, dictatorial fists are not in a position to muzzle the press or media outlets. However, irresponsible use of freedom will be followed by a trust deficit between ‘watchful media’ and its consumers.

With the elections around the corner ‘voters’ education’ through the mediated messages of electronic and print outlets is gaining momentum. Where paid political advertisements flash frequently on the television screen, commentaries about ’what next?’ are also surfacing at a swift pace. Voters are being sensitized politically and the first civilian-to-civilian transfer of power carries precedence under the umbrella of various media organizations.

Undoubtedly, mass communicated messages have a certain impact on public opinion and voting behaviors of the people. It is a positive development, like other democratic practices, emergence of the watchdog role of media would turn out to be a decisive factor in the upcoming elections. On the contrary, if the media barons and analysts adopt a nonchalant attitude, then the struggle for indoctrinating democratic values will be abortive. Contextual manipulation or misrepresentation of political parties is a violation of the guidelines framed for the fourth pillar of the state (i.e the media). As devised by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), rules should be followed by mass media, with ‘public good’ being its foremost priority.

Instead of cutting excerpts from the old speeches of politicians and joining them to depict an altogether different and misleading message, focus should be converged on electoral manifestos and election campaigns. Adducing electoral malpractices and projecting the transgressions of political parties during the election campaigns should be the primary goal of Pakistani media.

A report by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) reveals that around 89 percent of the 49 ‘observed’ election rallies violated the rules set by the ECP. Rallies are fervently shown without any allusion towards the way they deviate from the rules and regulations. All the mainstream political parties including Pakistan Tehreek -e-Insaaf, Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz, Jamaat-e-Islami and even Jamiat-Ulema-e-Islam-F have jeered at the principles for conducting rallies, but the electronic media turned a blind eye to such violations or downplayed them.

In a country like Pakistan, where majority of the people are illiterate and depend heavily on visual communication, privately owned television channels need to be careful. The pliant or murky attitude of a relatively free media can have adverse effects on public opinion. There are a number of guidelines that conform to ethical reporting of facts and obligate each component of a particular television channel (ranging from talk shows to political advertisements) to be impartial. In line with this code, even the paid political advertisements of various political parties should get equal time, space and projection in the media. No particular party should be given the leverage of additional representation at the expense of other parties.

With a clear boundary demarcated to tap the potential of media, positively, there is no reason for broadcasting houses or other sources of information to deviate from it. On the other hand, in case of gross violation of the ethical code of conduct, the ECP has also directed to make corrections adequately, where required. The media has been granted the liberty to be critical of the policies and electioneering of political parties, but at the same time reminds it to distinguish between manipulation and constructive criticism.

It is an abysmal fact that some of the mainstream television channels are not abiding by ECP’s media code of conduct. As a result, the Ethical Journalism Network (EJN), a global coalition of media professional groups and journalists, is purporting a ground-breaking monitoring program led by citizen journalists. Under this program, the performance of local journalists and media coverage of elections 2013 will be carefully scrutinized. The initiative - ‘Pakvotes’ - comprises a handful of trained citizen journalists. It is relying on around 40 field monitors armed with smart phones in various parts of the country. The citizen journalists will report electoral malpractices, especially in conflict-ridden regions like Balochistan.

It is heartening that the incompetence of mainstream media outlets has rendered this ‘observatory role’ to be transferable. Citizen journalists, who usually work voluntarily and are often unpaid workers, will now be making a worthwhile effort during the upcoming elections. Apart from keeping an eye on the menaces of rigging and bribed voting, they’ll also keep a check on media’s performance. Reports that will be overlooked by the national media, won’t go unattended this time as Pakvotes aims to project them to social networks like Twitter and Facebook.

Although their strength is negligible, in the future, their performance can help to frame a well-planned monitoring map for electoral campaigns after 2013.  In addition to this, campaigns of this nature provide a moment of honest reflection for the country’s media organizations. It would be a despondent embarrassment if the media fails to deliver to the masses and does not guide them in a reasonable and responsible manner for ‘Elections 2013′. ‘Media spin’ will tarnish credibility of journalists and broadcasters, something that isn’t a good omen for any democratic transition.
(The writer is a BS Mass Communication student at the University of the Punjab, Lahore and blogs at www.fakihahassanrizvi.wordpress.com. She is also
Editor-in-Chief – The Voice of Youth  – an online youth blog).

 

Al-Qaeda and Militancy- Lecture by Jason Burke

The Institute of Social and Cultural Studies (ISCS), University of the Punjab, arranged an interactive session with Jason Burke (South Asia correspondent for Guardian and The Observer). The discussion revolved around the evolution of Al-Qaeda, 9/11 terror attacks and the impact of militancy on the upcoming general elections in Pakistan.

Jason Burke has been covering issues pertaining to extremism and militancy since 1990. He told the students about the birth of Al-Qaeda back in 1988 and opined that militancy had been fomenting in various parts of the world even before the existence of Al-Qaeda. According to Burke, 9/11 terror attacks marked the climax of Al-Qaeda’s capability. He was of the view that the West had poor understanding of Al-Qaeda’s linkages with other militant groups and the fact that none of the militant groups ever swore allegiance to Al-Qaeda. “The attack on the World Trade Center, targeted America, specifically, but had a global impact. The campaign initiated by Osama Bin Laden was fostered by Bush administration through the Iraq invasion in 2003”, said Burke. He explained to the the students and faculty members of Behavioural and Social Sciences that attacks of this nature compel people to make a choice. Osama Bin Laden wanted to unite the strands of militancy against the U.S in the wake of 9/11 attacks. He labeled this as a mass scale clash of ideologies, proliferating mass violence. However, as per his views, violence no more prevailed through global collaborations, but it was relatively localized now.

Regarding the upcoming elections in 2013, which Burke intends to cover as a correspondent, he held the opinion that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) might threaten the elections by claiming that they are being held in line with global ideals of democracy or secularism.

 

6 Reasons why Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Should Contest Elections

Taliban in Herat. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Those brutal savages and protagonists of international media have tagged the upcoming elections in Pakistan as the ones based on hypocrisy. What if they contest elections…

There are 6 good reasons I can think of

1) With the TTP in the electoral process turn out would be around 90%
Unfortunately, Pakistanis don’t like to caste their votes they like spending the holiday in other ‘important tasks’. With the awe and terror of TTP around maybe we’ll not remain the country with the ‘least turn out’ in elections.

2) Infinite security for polling stations
I won’t make exaggerated and ambitious claims about the fairness of the elections if TTP contest them, but I assume that they will guard the polling stations well. A conducive environment or a ‘must-vote’ situation might emerge.

3) Women might not be allowed to vote
Not a very optimistic sign, but this can prevent confident and strong women like Wahida Shah from coming tot he polling stations and creating humour in something as grave as elections.

4) What if you don’t vote for them?
This might have serious repercussions. Anyhow, facing them would teach you self defence against bricks and hand grenades. This exercise will help you throughout your lifespan.

5) An ‘Extremist Election’
Such a ‘term’ must be coined for democracy to get back on track. Only Taliban are eligible to coin this.

6) They’ll also be representing the students
The word ‘Taliban’ literally means ‘someone seeking knowledge’ or a group of students. According to the meaning, Taliban will be the largest student group in the country to reach polling stations on the ‘election day’.

Note: It’s a satirical post!

 

Catch them when they are Young!- Chinese Mini MBA Professionals

National emblem of the People’s Republic of China (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Imagine a six year old child studying business administration and all the tactics to keep the accounts in order. This isn’t a mere figment, the Chinese have always been known for generating human capital. The generator of human machinery has left behind all other countries by awarding mini MBA and Finance degrees to children as young as 7 years.

Now the minors will learn how to count piles of money and the mechanics of business transactions. News reports suggest that this unusual course is sparking concerns about ‘money worship’ within the Chinese society and a materialistic mindset of the future generation.

Moreover, the courses are very expensive and only affording parents can allow their children to avail the opportunity. This doesn’t mean that majority of the Chinese population can’t afford these courses. According to the 2013 Hurun Report, a fifth of the world’s billionaires are from China. And now, some of these rich Chinese families are sending their young children to special training programs to help them learn and understand how to manage money, Chengdu Business Daily reported. The statistical trends and the overall scenario depicts the financial apprehension pruning in China. In my opinion the concern can be categorized as a renewed anxiousness because an average Chinese student already worries too much, works a lot and worships money as a consequence. The purpose is a lot different though, they want to work for the economic needs of their country as a whole and not for their individual pockets.

Related articles

• China’s rich seven-year-olds get an MBA in spending (thetimes.co.uk)
• Mini MBA (acordocoletivo.org)

 

Battered Bangla Blogosphere

The “flame war” within the ‘Bangla blogosphere’ got fierce as atheist bloggers were stigmatized by Islamists. The problem reached a volatile degree when in the month of February an anti-Islamist blogger was murdered. Recently, arrests of four online writers accused of religious insensitivity led to the closure of eight websites in Bangladesh. The issue of blogging fomented in Bangladesh after a group of online activists took to the streets of Dhaka in February to demand the death penalty for Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdul Kader Mullah. He was sentenced to life in prison for crimes committed during the country’s 1971 war of liberation from Pakistan. Reportedly, the Islamists are demanding the enforcement of Blasphemy laws in the country due to the derogatory remarks passed by the bloggers against Islam. It is impractical on part of both the Bangla bloggers and the Islamists to place such demands even when there are explicit cyber laws present in Bangladesh. Implementation of laws in this context, is more significant than ‘freedom of speech’ or ‘respect for others’ belief system’.

The Bangladesh’s ‘cyber code of conduct’ bars online writers to denigrate any religion. The existing 2006 Right to Information Act prescribes 10 years of imprisonment and penalty up to Taka 1 crore for hurting people’s religious sentiments using the Internet. The century-old Penal Code, on the other hand, suggests two years of imprisonment besides penalty for defaming religion and hurting people’s religious sentiment. According to the Home Minister Muhiuddin Khan, the Bangla government has sprawled in websites to search for those violating the law. The four detainees who tried to defame Islam were among the 11 bloggers identified by the government for ‘instigating hate in the name of religion’.

A right act by the government is being assailed by the liberals. The advocates of ‘freedom of speech’ are forgetting the moral bounds and the condition of religious sensitivity while using the internet. Even the ‘netiquettes’ (internet-etiquettes) do not allow online users to remain indifferent to others’ culture, values and belief system. The atheist bloggers are accusing the government of taking sides with Islamists. They also allege that the Islamist bloggers are planning to march towards Dhaka to demand for the death sentence of anti-Islamist web writers as they had committed blasphemy. On the other hand, the atheists themselves had gathered in Dhaka’s Shahbag Square for over a month to demand toughest punishments for perpetrators of 1971 “crimes against humanity”. It is paradoxically perplexing that how will they categorize ‘denigrating other faiths’ if not under the heading of ‘crimes against humanity’. With the government already setting up a panel to monitor blasphemy on social media the Islamists shouldn’t be hasty as well. It is better for the Bangla blogosphere to accept this ‘stand off’ as a legal matter. Resorting to coercive measures is irrational.

Religious mudslinging has gained momentum since the controversial anti-Islam film on Youtube sparked worldwide protests. Bangladesh also joined the bandwagon of those countries that banned Youtube as an online protest against the hate film. This accentuates the need to carve-out a set of rules for ‘online interfaith dialogue’. Bangladesh can set an unprecedented example by implementing its cyber laws and bringing to book online mischief makers.