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Lawyers and Journalists in Pakistan have called on their federal government to repeal the recently implemented draconian PECA amendments in light of the Sindh High Court's verdict to refer the amendments to a constitutional bench.
The Dawn reported that, 'As the Sindh High Court observed that petitions challenging recent amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) should be heard and decided by the court's Constitutional Bench, a consultative meeting of lawyers and journalists called on the federal government to immediately repeal the recent changes to cybercrime laws.' Convened by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Monday, the consultative gathering also demanded an immediate end to restrictions on independent journalism. After detailed discussions, a unanimous resolution adopted by the journalists and lawyers present emphasised that freedom of expression was the cornerstone of democracy and it must be safeguarded against all forms of coercion, the Dawn added The consultative meeting also condemned and disapproved PECA (Amendment) Act, 2025, being defective legislation, considering it a violation of Article 19 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to freedom of speech and expression. The Dawn in its report further added that, The consultation noted that PECA (Amendment) Act, 2025, infringed upon the rights of media personnel as protected under Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) adopted by the United Nations, to which Pakistan is a signatory. Additionally, the definition of the place of occurrence is unclear which could lead to registration of numerous FIRs on different places against single occurrence. Furthermore, tribunals should be entirely free from executive influence. The meeting according to The Dawn also acknowledged the media as the fourth pillar of the state and reaffirmed its strong support for independent journalism and the protection of media personnel. It stressed that any attempt to curtail media freedom threatened democratic values and transparency in Pakistan. (ANI)
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