PEMRA bars Geo TV from airing interview of Ehsanullah Ehsan

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Thursday barred Geo TV  from airing promo and interview of former TTP spokesman Ehsan Ullah Ehsan.

The interview was scheduled to be aired tonight at 11pm.

In a statement, PEMRA said that ever since promo of the interview of Ehsan Ullah Ehsan was aired, it has received a number of complaints through WhatsApp, SMS, Facebook, Twitter and PEMRA’s call centre.

PEMRA Prohibits Airing of Terrorists Interview pic.twitter.com/egF3NPvvOi

— Report PEMRA (@reportpemra) April 27, 2017

The complainants expressed their anger and anguish asking PEMRA to stop airing of the programme.

“Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is a terrorist organization and Ehsan Ullah Ehsan has been a spokesperson of this terrorist outfit. During the last several years, he has taken responsibility of mass murder of Pakistani nationals through terrorist activities across the country. Thousands of children, men, women, civil and military officials lost their lives due to the heinous crime of his terrorist organization.

“It is quite heart-wrenching and deeply disturbing for the loved ones of those martyred in terrorist acts to see the member of a terrorist outfit appearing on TV screens in any capacity/mode, a known militant who earlier would claim responsibility for acts of massacre,” it said.

According to PEMRA, airing of Ehsan Ullah Ehsan’s interview is a clear violation of PEMRA’s directives that it had issued under the National Action Plan and Section 3(3) of Electronic Media Code of Conduct 2015.

The authority warned that in case of non-compliance of PEMRA’s decision, strict action will be taken against the violators under Section 29, 30 of PEMRA ordinance 2002 as amendment by PEMRA Act 2007.