As the year draws to a close, Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) calls on stakeholders, including duty bearers, media organizations, politicians, federal and provincial governments, and law enforcement agencies, to reaffirm a commitment to creating a safer environment for journalists and media professionals to work in. 

In 2025, PPF has documented at least 146 confirmed attacks on journalists and media professionals in connection with their work and attempts of censorship to regulate and restrict free expression. Journalists have faced a range of attacks and threats, and the repeat patterns of violence against the media, followed by continued impunity for perpetrators, must come to an end.

PPF documented repeated instances of physical assault and obstruction, particularly during on-ground coverage, where journalists were beaten, manhandled, detained, or forcibly removed from reporting locations, and in some cases had their equipment damaged or confiscated. Notably, during a year of extreme climate events, journalists were also subject to violence while covering the impact of floods in the Punjab province.

Journalists were also subjected to arrests, short-term detentions, and raids on media offices and press club premises, underscoring a pattern in which both individuals and media institutions were targeted. Well-known media professionals were amongst those arrested, including Farhan Mallick, Khalid Jamil, and Sohrab Barkat. Such incidents not only disrupt reporting but also contribute to an environment of fear and insecurity.

At the same time, legal harassment, intimidation, and censorship increasingly shaped the operating environment for journalists. PPF recorded a growing reliance on cybercrime laws, particularly through the emboldened and amended Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act, to register cases against journalists, expose them to prolonged investigations, and, in some instances, restrict their movement through measures such as travel restrictions, as was observed in the case of Farhan Mallick.

Meanwhile, 2025, also established that legal challenges for journalists don’t end at the registration of a case. In October, an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad took up a case involving allegations of drug possession and terrorism from 2024 against senior journalist Matiullah Jan, for which the verdict was reserved in December. 

Journalists also faced direct threats, online harassment, and intimidation extending to their families, often exacerbated by hostile rhetoric from political leaders and officials.  In November, an AI-generated video targeted and harassed a woman journalist, Benazir Shah, focused on her character assassination.

Regulatory actions, court orders blocking digital platforms, internet and mobile service suspensions, and restrictions on access to reporting locations further constrained both on-ground and digital journalism.

Additionally, financial pressure through the selective allocation and suspension of government advertising remained a tool to target media outlets. Government advertisements were withheld from media organizations, including the Dawn Media Group and the Daily Sahafat newspaper.

It is unacceptable that year after year, journalists continue to face forms of physical violence and are now increasingly also facing the brunt of tightened legislation for digital spaces. Media professionals are now operating within a landscape of layered restrictions — from outright threats and violence to redlines to work within and increasingly active use of legal avenues to silence them as individual journalists, media bodies, and media outlets. 

The much-delayed establishment of the federal Commission for the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals (CPJMP) in November was a welcome step taken this year in the right direction; however, its creation alone is not sufficient to address the entrenched risks faced by journalists. The Commission must now be made fully functional, with clear rules, adequate resources, and the institutional independence required to operate effectively. The establishment of the Commission is just the first step and must be followed with actions including the prompt registration and investigation of complaints, coordination with law enforcement and judicial authorities, and regular public reporting on progress and outcomes. 

The cases documented in 2025 include: 

Assault and Violence:

• 38 instances of physical assault and manhandling, and 2 journalists injured in an accident while on assignment 
• 5 detentions 
• 2 instances of abduction 
• 4 attacks on property, including raids 

Legal Challenges: 

• 8 arrests 
• 30 instances of case registration, including 22 with sections of the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) included 
• 24 documented instances of legal action, including by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA)

 

Intimidation: 

• 10 instances of threats issued, including online threats/harassment 
• 3 instances of threats of legal action
• 9 instances of harassment and intimidation, including through a journalist’s family or through the rhetoric, remarks, and actions of political leaders or the government 
• 2 instances of placement on the No Fly List

Censorship, Restrictions, and Regulation: 

• 6 instances of mobile or internet service suspensions 
• 1 Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) directive 
• 1 court order to block 27 YouTube channels 
• 1 show with YouTube access blocked in Pakistan
• 1 restriction on reporting from outside Adiala Jail, where the opposition leader is being held 

In addition to this, financial targeting of media outlets has also been observed in 2025. Government ads have been withheld from media outlets, including Daily Sahafat and the Dawn Media Group’s newspaper, television channel, and radio station. 

PPF’s recommendations for 2026: 

• Stakeholders must work towards implementing commitments that Pakistan has made — both domestically and internationally — to protect the right to freedom of expression and to move beyond lip service to actual measures and effective implementation of existing mechanisms that provide recourse in instances of attacks on journalists and can finally help in moving the needle toward reduced impunity for these crimes. It is worth reminding the relevant stakeholders that Pakistan has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, under which, in Article 19, the right to freedom of expression is protected.

 

• At the start of the year, the amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act, which further emboldened it, set the tone for action in the digital realm, and since multiple cases against journalists under PECA have been documented. We urge authorities to provide more clarity on the implementation of PECA and on the functioning of cybercrime bodies such as the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA). The bulldozing of PECA despite opposition should also serve as a reminder to hold consultations, collect feedback, and incorporate it before laws are passed.

 

• The Federal Media Safety Commission, now established under the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act, 2021, must be made fully operational. Its rules and functional mechanisms should be established at the earliest to ensure that it actively investigates all incidents of violence against journalists brought before it, monitors legal proceedings, and publishes transparent progress reports to reinforce accountability and prevent impunity.

 

• In Sindh, the Commission for the Protection of Journalists and Other Media Practitioners must function effectively. The commission should ensure that incidents of violence at the provincial level are reported, investigated, and addressed promptly, while also publishing periodic reports that inform the public, civil society, and policymakers about cases and trends, strengthening transparency and responsiveness.

 

• At the provincial level, in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan, media safety legislation is absent. With the unique circumstances and nature of threats to journalists in each province, these provincial governments should introduce and pass laws to pave the way for protection for journalists.

 

• Under both laws, the federal and Sindh governments are falling short of achieving their objectives to address impunity. The federal media safety law states that the government will implement best practices provided for in the United Nations Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity. The Sindh law states that the government will develop and implement effective strategies to combat impunity, including coordinating with stakeholders to implement best practices in the UN Plan of Action. The laws are binding, and the governments must fulfill their responsibilities.
• The suspension of advertisements to the media outlets has exposed a strategy of targeting media outlets by restricting their source of financial support. Federal or provincial authorities exercising such measures must ensure that agreed-upon quotas of advertisements to media are provided without discrimination.

 

• The closure of the Dawn Urdu web desk, layoffs at Nukta Pakistan, and the now normal practice of delayed salaries are reflective of the state of the media in Pakistan at the moment. While external pressures complicate financial circumstances, media organizations should think of the future of the media, keep an eye on international trends, and adapt to develop financially viable and sustainable business models. A model of dependency on government advertisements cannot free itself from the government’s pressures. 

 

• Codes of conduct must be developed and, where available, enforced by political parties, especially during rallies and protests, with safe zones designated for journalists. As observed in recent years, often the action against journalists comes in the form of remarks by political leadership against individual journalists. Party leaders must recognize the impact of their remarks on the safety of media professionals and ensure that codes of conduct for interaction with the media are implemented at all levels. 

 

• The threat of AI-generated attacks, particularly against women, is of grave concern and must be advocated against through engagements with big tech and more clarity and accountability on reporting such posts. Unless effective countermeasures are taken, such videos and manipulated footage are likely to become increasingly common in the world of AI, where such edits can be done almost seamlessly. 

 

• In line with this, special attention should be given to the safety of women journalists, who face disproportionate online abuse, gender-based threats, and character assassination.

 

• Media organizations must comply with the mandates in the federal and Sindh media safety laws to provide training, protective equipment, and insurance to their journalists. This includes coverage for physical and psychological risks, while ensuring that safety protocols are actively implemented and monitored to protect staff in the field. In an environment of growing threats, including threats in online spheres, media organizations should consider the need to provide such training a necessity. Additionally, media organizations must pay attention and establish active gender harassment committees as required under the Protection Against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act. 

 

• Attacks on press clubs must be treated as serious violations of press freedom. Federal and provincial authorities must ensure that all incidents involving raids, forced entry, vandalism, or violence at press club premises are promptly registered, independently investigated, and prosecuted.

 

• Press clubs and journalist unions should play an active role in protecting members by establishing emergency support systems, legal aid mechanisms, and advocacy campaigns. They should coordinate with law enforcement and the media safety commissions to report incidents in real time and provide safety guidance to journalists working in high-risk areas or covering politically sensitive events.

 

• Civil society must continue to engage with different stakeholders, from journalists to media outlets to press clubs, unions, associations, and duty bearers in the government, law enforcement agencies, and political parties. Civil societies can identify gaps in the safety of journalists and media professionals and tailor programming to address these.

 

• The unresolved murder of PPF Press Freedom Hero 2023, Arshad Sharif, underscores the urgent need for a credible, transparent, and time-bound conclusion to investigations into the murders of journalists, particularly in high-profile cases with cross-border dimensions. Pakistani authorities must ensure full cooperation with Kenyan counterparts, finalize mutual legal assistance processes, and make public the complete findings of the Special Joint Investigation Team to restore public confidence. The continued absence of arrests or indictments years after a judicial finding that the killing was unlawful reinforces a dangerous message that even the most prominent journalists can be killed without consequence. Resolving the Arshad Sharif case is therefore essential not only for justice for his family, but also for signaling a genuine commitment to ending impunity for crimes against journalists.

 

• An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad, taking up the 2024 case involving absurd allegations of drug possession and terrorism from 2024 against senior journalist Matiullah Jan, can serve as a litmus test for the legal consequences that journalists are facing in Pakistan and must be closely observed.