arrested,/a> prominent
journalist Najam Sethi was charged with conducting anti-state
activities, the attorney general said today.
The charge was laid by the police.
Owner and editor of the English-language weekly Friday Times,
Sethi was arrested on May 8 after he gave a speech
criticising the government.
His family and lawyers said Sethi was arrested because
his newspaper is critical of the government and because he gave an
interview to a British Broadcasting Corp television team that was
preparing a documentary on government corruption.
His wife, Jugnoo Mohsin, says the government has framed false
charges against her husband to punish him for criticising
government policies in his publication.
Opposition parties, human rights groups and journalists have
assailed the government for what they call its continued attacks on
Pakistan's press. Sethi's arrest was the most recent case.
Many of those targeted assisted the BBC team.
The government denies the charge and says Sethi's arrest has
nothing to do with press freedom.
The United States, the European Union and the International
Journalists Organisation have also expressed outrage over Sethi's
arrest and urged the government to order his immediate release.
UNI
Tell us what you think of this report
