Stop spreading misguiding information

By Daud Khan

What forced me to write these lines is a report carried out by some leading international news agencies and picked by Pakistani print media in their Friday's editions. It was the speech by Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai's to tribal elders and members of the provincial council in Kunar province on Thursday.
The first thing I wish to bring into the notice of newspaper's editors and readers is that no journalist, foreign or local, was allowed to cover the indoor function. Hence, what they (agencies) reported was second hand information with "picking a little negative and leaving much positive" part of Karzai's speech. The second thing is that no foreign media had its qualified reporter in Kunar. All they had are those who based their reports on information they get from junior officials about such events.
It is an unpleasant reality that except from verbal rhetoric like "friendly", "brotherly", "cordial" relations etc, ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan can never be called free of suspicion and bad blood. But in the recent times since 2001, thanks to the few years in power of Taliban and the support the hardliner militia drawn from Pakistan, the role of irresponsible and misguiding reporting can not be ruled out in pushing the two "inseparable" neighbours and brothers (Pakistan and Afghanistan) towards antagonism and animosity.
Thursday's piece of reporting of Karzai's speech is the recent example of developing bad blood (though not deliberately) between people and governments of the two by disseminating half truth and misguiding information. To be brief, I wish to quote the Afghan President and let the readers decide what he said:
"After taking the reign of government, I held four or five meetings with Pakistan President Mr (Shaghali) Pervez Musharraf, and told him that gone are the days when Afghan governments would be formed in Pakistan. Afghanistan can no more be used as a training camp. Bomb blasts, suicide attacks and the killing of Afghan ulema now can't compel the Afghan people to become refugees once again."
"During the reign of Taliban, a minister will wait for the whole day in offices of the Pakistani intelligence agencies to meet a (army) major."
This was the "negative" part of the speech which was picked by majority of news agencies and newspapers while the rest, which I wish to quote briefly, was set aside. It is:
"We are thankful today and will be thankful even after hundred years to our Pakistani brothers for the support and help they extended to us for 25 years."
"Pakistan is our brother country. I was as much grieved over the (October 8) earthquake in Pakistan that I felt the destruction had occurred in my own country (Afghanistan). To reduce the pain and grief of Pakistanis, we offered all possible help. We have only four helicopters, which were sent to Pakistan to help them."
"Every Pakistani is our brother; our own blood. We fully share the grief and happiness of Pakistan (is)."
"May God save Pakistan from bad days. If something happened to it (Pakistan), we will prove a shield to defend it. But I ask Pakistan that terrorism is a fire. If the flames are burning today in Afghanistan, it will reach there the next day."
"A peaceful Afghanistan is in the interest of Pakistan and will defend it but an Afghanistan at war can never be in the interest of Pakistan. We want peace, friendship and brotherhood but on equal footings."
These were the remarks in which Karzai specifically mentioned Pakistan. In the rest part of his speech, the Afghan President lamented the burning of schools, killing of teachers, doctors, engineers and ulema in Afghanistan and compared the situation with Pakistan, where, as he said: "Women are sitting without headscarf with ulema before TV cameras and holding debate on Islam. But in Afghanistan, schools are being burnt to keep girls students away from getting education."

I wrote the above lines to remind my fellow journalists to be responsible, honest and careful while reporting such sensitive issues. (end)