Editors Guild of India condemns threats to journalists in Kashmir

“Space for media freedom and active civil society is now steadily eroding in the region”.

New Delhi, Nov 18: The Editors Guild of India on Friday expressed it’s concern about the recent threats issued to journalists working in Kashmir, “by alleged terror organisations, and the subsequent resignations of five of the journalists from their respective media outlets.”

In a statement, the Guild said that it strongly condemns such threats.

“Journalists in Kashmir now find themselves in the firing line from the state authorities as well as terrorists,” it said.

The Guild said that the media houses have once again been named by “terror groups warning that those associated with well-known regional papers, including Rising Kashmir and Greater Kashmir,will be declared ‘traitors’ and that ‘their timeline is sealed’.”

It also stated that the space for media freedom and active civil society is now steadily eroding in the region. “The Kashmir Press Club, which had become an important institution for fighting for the protection and rights of journalists, was shut down by state administration earlier this year, which further weakened the layer of peer-driven protection for the journalists, ” it said.

The press body also said that the situation has “worsened further after these pronouncements by terror organisations, and there is a heightened sense of fear and insecurity in journalists, which makes it difficult for them to work freely.” “The Guild condemns these threats and calls upon the state government to create an atmosphere of security and trust wherein the media is not compelled to take sides and is able to work in a free environment with full security, ” it said. (GK)