'Yellow journalism': Why did Pakistan ban Al Jazeera?

Al Jazeera, a Qatari media outlet, has drawn criticism from the Pakistan Information and Broadcasting Ministry, which accused it of “selective reporting” and “yellow journalism”. The comments come after Al Jazeera published a series of reports on the brutal crackdown on the anti-government protests in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The ministry said in a post on X, “We have taken note of Al Jazeera’s selective reporting from handpicked polling stations in Muzaffarabad today. Through carefully chosen timings and scripted statements from selected individuals, the channel has sought to misrepresent the AJK elections and the voting process.”

Al Jazeera’s reports explored the raging protests amid the ongoing elections in the region and issues raised by a local pressure group called Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC). The government had already designated the protest-leading group as a banned organisation under the Anti-terrorism Act of 2014. 

The constituency elections in PoK were earlier scheduled for July 27, but were rescheduled to be held in three parts, following extreme backlash.

The protesters are demanding the scrapping of 12 seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees, noting that those who live within PoK cannot contest these seats. They argue that people living in constituencies outside PoK do not require a part in its legislature. Additionally, the seats generally go to the ruling party, which the protesters claim is a tactic for the government to impose its agenda in the assembly.

Elections for these twelve seats took place on August 2, along with the nine seats of Muzaffarabad. The coverage of this polling is what the Pakistan government has flagged in its report against Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera was one of the few media outlets consistently covering the election-related unrest in the PoK, reporting deaths, internet shutdowns, and curfews that took place.

Although authorities did not formally announce a ban on Al Jazeera, multiple users reported that they were unable to access the media outlet’s English-language website page.

Sohaib Khan, a former official of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front’s AJK-GB, was the first to post on X that the broadcaster appeared to be banned after its coverage of the elections.

JAAC has condemned the move, calling it an “attack on press freedom” and urging authorities such as the UN Human Rights Council to immediately intervene to restore access.