Above: Steven Butler/Photo Courtesy: cpj.org
~By Usha Rani Das
A deteriorating climate of free speech prevails in present India. The situation for journalists grew steadily adverse in 2017. “There is a serious threat to press freedom from many fronts like serious defamation suits, courts ordering on restraints on publication, political restraints, physical attacks by police and of course murders,” said Steven Butler, Asia programme coordinator of Committee to Protect Journalists at BG Verghese Memorial Lecture. He further added though journalists are being attacked all over the world, the pattern in India is different. He explained: “Journalists in India are murdered in retaliation of their work. We don’t see deaths related to historical events such as wars, terrorist attacks for example. This seems odd as countries with higher rates of crimes and murders like the United States don’t have nearly as many journalists killed.”
According to 2017 report of The Hoot on press freedom, The India Freedom Report, Media Freedom and Freedom of Expression, there have been 46 attacks and three killings which can be linked to their journalism, 27 cases of police action including detentions, arrests and cases filed and 12 cases of threat. It stated: “A host of perpetrators made reporters and photographers, even editors, fair game as there were murders, attacks, threats, and cases filed against them for defamation, sedition, and internet related offences. It was a year in which two journalists were shot at point blank range and killed, and one was hacked to death as police stood by and did not stop the mob.”
The report stated that the major perpetrators are police and politicians and political workers, followed by right wing activists and other non-state actors. “Lawmakers became law breakers as members of parliament and legislatures figured among the perpetrators of attacks or threats. These cases included a minister from Uttar Pradesh who threatened to set a journalist on fire, and an MLA from Chirala in Andhra Pradesh and his brother accused of being behind a brutal attack on a magazine journalist. If Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad Yadav threatened to punch a Republic TV reporter in the face, his son Tejaswi’s guards assaulted reporters and photographers when they arrived at his house to get his reaction to an FIR being lodged against him on corruption charges,” it stated.
There is a scarier picture here. “There has been not a single conviction upheld over a period of 25 years. That is a horrifying record. Murder is the ultimate form of censorship and in India it works,” said Butler.
Steven Butler is covering Asia and South Asia since the 1980s. Though he extensively covered turmoil and was even teargassed in Korea, he never felt in great danger when he travelled. “It never occurred to me that I can be an intentional target of crime because I was a journalist,” he said. This illusion came to an end with the death of Daniel Pearl in Karachi. “Probably the world is becoming a more dangerous place for journalists,” he stated.
Butler did not just talk about the problem. He said: “The question I will raise is what you will do about it. Strong press freedom is a must. Our work at CPJ is to protect that. India lacks this kind of organization where journalists can go for help. Many don’t know where to go when they face such problems. Take the initiative to make it happen. The next general elections in India will be held in 2019. Make it an election issue. Make sure they don’t go unpunished.”
CPJ was found in 1981 to promote press freedom and defend the right of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal.