Three journalists were killed in the October 8 earthquake in Muzzafarabad and Bagh areas of the Pak-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) Kashmir while at least five newsmen are missing, according to information received by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists.
A PFUJ release said that the journalists who died in the quake were Sardar Hanif of Jang, Bagh; Abdul Hafeez of Juraat, Muzzafarabad, whose wife also died; and Javed Iqbal Butt of the daily Jinnah. Eleven journalists suffered injuries while those still missing were from Balakot and adjoining areas.
PFUJ said around 50 journalists had suffered personal losses. Some of them lost members of their families and houses of most of them were destroyed. PFUJ hoped that newspapers concerned would fulfil their responsibility in this regard
According to the PFUJ release, the journalists, mostly local correspondents who have been affected in Balakot include Khurshid Zaman, of Daily Muhasib (seriously injured, seven members of family dead, house destroyed), Qazi Asad Israeli of Daily Nawa-e-Waqat (injured, house destroyed), M. Fareed of Daily Ausaf (three children dead, wife injured), Javed Iqbal, freelancer (injured, wife dead, house destroyed), Malik Naushad of Daily Assas, Islamabad (missing, house destroyed), Azhar Awan of Daily Aaj, Abbottabad (four members of the family dead, house destroyed), Rashid Awan (injured, four family members dead, house destroyed), Shahjehan, correspondent for Daily Shumal (missing, house destroyed), and Naseer Anwar, correspondent for Daily Ausaf (missing house destroyed).
The affected journalists of Muzaffarabad include Khwaja Mohasin of Daily Jinnah (injured, house destroyed), Wahid Iqbal (house destroyed), Abdur Rasheed Malik, Editor Daily Muhasib (injured, wife dead, house destroyed), Akhlaq Sagar of Daily Siasaat (five members of the family dead, house destroyed), Shazad Afredi of INP wire-service (entire family dead, house destroyed), Jhenagir Awan freelancer (missing), Jehangir reporter Muhasib (missing), Raja Zafar, Resident Editor Muhasib (three family members dead, house destroyed), Shahzad Dawood reporter Daily Ausaf (injured, house destroyed), Mawish Gul, Daily Ausaf (injured, entire family dead, house destroyed), Gulzar Usmani of Daily Khabrein (injured, house destroyed), Akhlaq Bukhair of Daily Hamdard (house destroyed), and Javed Chaudhry of Daily Azkar (four family members died, house destroyed).
The journalists based in Karachi or Islamabad, whose families suffered losses include Naim Khokar of Daily Jang Karachi (44 family members died), Ahmed Hasan of Dawn, Islamabad (two daughters, brother and uncle dead), Waqar Fani of Nawa-e-Waqat (eight family members dead), Sardar Jehanzeb of Daily Jinnah (wife, father-in-law and two other family members dead), Umer Farooq of Daily Islam (mother dead), Mushtaq Minhas, Aaj TV (sister missing), M. Sajjad of Daily Ausaf (mother dead), Imran Abbasi (two family members dead), Zahoor Alam, Editor Daily Ausaf (brother and uncle dead), Raja Asghar, Daily Dawn, Islamabad (brother dead), Khaliq Keyani of Daily Dawn (brother dead), Zahid Jamil (two brothers dead).
The PFUJ also praised the efforts of the Abbottabad Union of Journalists (AUJ) and Rawalpindi-Islamabad Union of Journalists (RIUJ), who were collecting data and in touch with the affected newsmen.
PFUJ president Pervez Shaukat and secretary-general Mazhar Abbas appealed to newspaper owners, people from different section of the society to come forward and help them. People can contact the PFUJ secretary-general on email: mazhar_abbas58@yahoo.com or abbas.mazhar@gmail.com. They can also contact AUJ president Shahid Chaudhry at e-mail shahid_journalist@hotmail.com.
Imtiaz Alam, secretary-general of the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA) told editorsweblog, "The journalists' community from the earthquake-hit areas, like any other community, is also in a miserable condition along with their families. Being a part of media community, we the journalists in South Asia are deeply aggrieved over the plight of our fellow journalists in the earthquake affected areas. Dozens of journalists, along with their families, have equally suffered the worst quake in region's history, after effects of which are even worse than the last Tsunami."
Alam, also a member of the World Editors Forum which publishes editorsweblog, said, "On behalf of SAFMA, I call upon the journalist community in the region and the world at large and all concerned international agencies to come to the rescue of the journalists who are in dire need of substantial humanitarian assistance for their rehabilitation."
SAFMA has created a separate account under its subsidiary, Free Media Foundation, a registered and legal body, to support the aggrieved journalists. A committee of six senior journalists (Imtiaz Alam, Editor Current Affairs, The News, M. Ziauddin, Resident Editor Dawn, Nusrat Javed, Resident Editor, The Post, M. Afzal Khan, Special Correspondent, The Nation, Mustansar Javed, Chief Editor, Mashriq, and Hussain Naqi, Editor South Asian Media Monitor) has been formed to set the criteria and supervise distribution of funds among the most deserving.
