Media crackdown shuts down Kashmir independent press club
On July 21, 2020, Kashmiri journalists protested against media repression in Srinagar. (Photo credit: Dar Yasin/AP)
Indian-administered Kashmir's press freedom has been thrown into doubt since pro-government journalists and police officers seized its independent press club. In recent months, dozens of journalists have been harassed and detained in Kashmir, an area contested by both India and Pakistan.
A group of journalists supporting the Indian government stormed the Kashmir Press Club over the weekend with the help of armed police and locked up the building, preventing journalists from entering. In the wake of the government's anger over the club's stance on media freedom and critical reporting, new elections were set to be held.
Widespread condemnation followed the overthrow. In a statement, the Editors Guild of India said it was "aghast" at the way the office and leadership of Kashmir Press Club were "forcefully taken over" and accused the state of being "brazenly complicit with the coup".
The worst fears of the independent journalists in Kashmir were confirmed on Monday when the regional administration declared that the press club had been deregistered and "ceased to exist", and that the land on which it stands had been given back to the government.
After the national government led by Narendra Modi unilaterally revoked the region's autonomy in August 2019, stripped it of statehood, dissolved its government, and brought it under Delhi's control, independent journalism has been steadily suppressed in Kashmir. Investigative journalists have encountered intimidation, harassment, and lengthy interrogations in the region.
In the past two years, more than 40 people have been subject to raids or police questioning or placed on no-fly lists. In June 2020, the government also enacted an aggressive new media policy for Kashmir, imposing mandatory background checks for reporters and giving the administration the authority to prosecute those spreading fake news or misinformation. After the Kashmir High Court Bar Association and the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce, the press club is the latest independent civil society group to be prevented from holding elections since August 2019.
* This article contains information sourced from The Guardian.
