WASHINGTON: With Pakistan’s general elections just a few days away, the US State Department has voiced worry over reports highlighting the country’s lack of press freedom and freedom of expression.
In the forthcoming elections, which are scheduled for February 8, the eligible voters of the nation will choose their new administration. At this crucial juncture, the press and media play a vital role in enlightening and educating the public.
“We also have not been ambiguous about how we feel very strongly that a free and independent media are vital institutions that underpin healthy democracies by ensuring that electors can make informed decisions and hold the government to account,” State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said at a press briefing in Washington on Thursday.
According to the US, journalists are essential to reporting on free and transparent elections, Patel continued.
He went on to say, “We also remain concerned about any reports that may surface regarding limitations on press, association, and expression freedoms.
That would be—we think that kind of thing conflicts with the self-proclaimed objective of the Pakistani authorities, which is a completely transparent and fair election.”
Regarding the country’s electoral transparency, the US official reaffirmed that the Pakistani people would ultimately determine who would rule the country in the future. “Our interest continues to be in the democratic process.”
In response to a question concerning Pakistani Foreign Secretary Syrus Qazi’s claim that India was involved in international killings after the US and Canada, the official stated he was not aware of the particular report.
The governments of India and Pakistan have to “talk more about this,” he continued.
A day prior, Qazi revealed the “sophisticated and sinister” Indian campaign of extraterritorial and extrajudicial assassinations, stating in a news conference that Pakistan possesses “credible evidence” linking Indian operatives to the deaths of two of its people on Pakistani land.
The announcement was made months after the US and Canada each publicly charged Indian agents with being connected to attempted assassinations on their territory. On the other hand, New Delhi has begun looking into Washington’s charges and has dismissed Ottawa’s accusations.
