Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) welcomes the establishment of the much-delayed Commission for the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals (CPJMP). PPF expresses hope that this long-awaited step will finally begin to address the safety threats faced by journalists and media professionals across Pakistan.
On June 18, the federal cabinet approved the appointment of Kamal Uddin Tipu as the Chairperson of the Commission. The decision was made during a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Prime Minister House.
The Commission has been set up under Section 12 of the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Act, 2021. The Act was passed by the National Assembly on November 8, 2021, and by the Senate shortly after, and signed into law by the President on December 2, 2021.
However, the Commission mandated under the Act was not formed for more than three years.
Its establishment, following the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s notification, marks an overdue but important fulfilment of the law’s promise. PPF hopes that this long delay will now be followed by swift, decisive implementation.
According to PPF’s Impunity Day Report 2025, at least 137 attacks on journalists were documented between January and October 2025. These included 35 physical assaults, 5 detentions, 2 abductions, and 4 attacks on media property. Journalists also continued to face legal pressures, with 8 arrests, 30 cases registered—including 22 under PECA—and 23 actions from investigative and cybercrime agencies. The report further noted 19 incidents of intimidation and harassment. Between 2020 and 2025, six journalists were killed because of their work, while motives in several other killings remain inconclusive.
The 12-member independent commission comprising ex officio officials and representatives from journalist unions across the federal capital, Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan. Members of the Commission include:
- Nayyer Ali, Secretary, National Press Club
- Ghulam Nabi Yousafzai, Secretary, Press Association of the Supreme Court
- Naveed Akbar Chaudhary, Parliamentary Reporters Association of Pakistan
- Afzal Butt, President, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) – Barna Group
- Hassan Abbas, PFUJ (Barna–Rana Azeem Group)
- Nawaz Raza, PFUJ Dastoor Group
- Tahir Hassan Khan, Karachi Union of Journalists
- Tamsela Chishti, Punjab Union of Journalists
- Nadia Saboohi, Khyber Union of Journalists
- Khalil Ahmed, Balochistan Union of Journalists
- Ex officio members includes the Principal Information Officer/ Executive Director General from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and the Director General HR (Ex-Officio) from the Ministry of Human Rights.
