Muzaffarabad, (Parliament Times) : Prime Minister Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan has directed the Secretary Information Ms. Mudhat Shahzad and Director General Information Raja Azhar Iqbal to take requisite measures relating to the establishment of the Press Academy within three weeks.T
he Prime Minister also appointed two senior journalists Sardar Zulfiqar Ali and Tariq Naqash as focal persons who would coordinate the efforts vis-a-vis the establishment of press academy, making press foundation proactive and protection of journalists. The PM said that the Journalists Protection Bill should be made a part of the Press Foundation Act.
With reference to the training of journalists, the PM said that comprehensive courses should be designed in the academy for the training of journalists and media persons and seats should be kept for the training of journalists from other provinces of Pakistan. “In this regard, the services of the Mass Communication Department of Azad Jammu and Kashmir University should also be taken.“The establishment of the Journalism Learning Academy will provide ample learning opportunities to journalists, which will increase their efficiency and promote positive journalism”, the PM said. He said that the massive mass medica development has turned the world into a global village. “The current era is the era of hybrid war in which wars are not being fought in the fields but through media”, he said, adding that the role of media persons was also very important in this regard.
Terming the Press Foundation as one of the worthy state institutions he said that the government would provide the provision of resources required to make it more active and better.“Government will take all possible steps including provision of resources for development of Azad Kashmir media”, he maintained.
