PFUJ concerned over coronavirus cases in media

SUKKUR: In a joint statement, PFUJ President Shehzada Zulfiqar, Vice President Lala Asad Pathan and Secretary General Nasir Zaidi have said that since the outbreak of COVID-19, most of the journalists have been covering coronavirus-related news without proper equipment; consequently several journalists have tested positive, while three of them lost their lives. They warned owners of media houses to immediately put in place measures for the safety and security of working journalists and media workers, otherwise, they will be held responsible for the loss of lives of journalists due to the pandemic. It is the prime responsibility of the owners to take effective measures for the protection of employees working at their media houses as per guidelines issued by the Government of Pakistan and district managements. They also asked the government to ensure implementation of the safety guidelines. The PFUJ demanded provision of protection equipment for the frontline journalists and media workers to enable them to perform their duties in a safe way. The PFUJ also demanded that the heirs of journalists, who lost their lives to coronavirus, be paid one million rupees compensation amount at the earliest as announced by the government.