The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly has passed a law granting the speaker broad powers to regulate media coverage of legislative proceedings, including the authority to bar journalists from the assembly and restrict the publication or broadcast of its proceedings.
The legislation, passed on April 30 through a supplementary agenda, was not made public for several months. It provides for prison terms, fines and other penalties for journalists and media organisations found to have violated its provisions.
Under the law, journalists who breach restrictions imposed by the speaker could face up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine of up to Rs1 million, or both. It also allows legal action against media organisations accused of publishing distorted or misleading reports of assembly proceedings, with penalties of up to three years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs300,000.