KABUL (SW) – At least 30 media outlets have ceased their activities for security and economic reasons across Afghanistan in last one year alone, revealed findings by Salam Watandar.
Among these media outlets included five television channels, 9 radio stations and 16 print media outlets that could no longer remain operational in 13 provinces of the country.
The study indicated that two TV stations shut its doors in Herat and three more closed down in Parwan province. Among others, 2 radio stations ceased to exist in Faryab province, 2 more closed down in Badakhshan province while one each end its operations in Herat, Logar, Kunduz, Kandahar and Ghazni provinces.
On the other hand, according to media professionals in the provinces, about 16 print media outlets in Farah, Ghor, Nimroz, Badghis and Badakhshan provinces have not been active for the past year. Based on the information obtained, most of these media outlets are in the western part of the country.
“There are about 15 media outlets that have stopped operations in the western part of the country in the last year, most of which are print and mostly in Badghis, Ghor and Herat provinces,” said Hamid Momen, head of NAI media watchdog in the western part of Afghanistan. “And there are several video and audio media outlets that have been shut down in Herat province.”
Abdul Majeeb Khalwatgar, head of NAI, blamed the shutdown on the country’s poor security and economic situation. “The reasons for the closure of media outlets are either economic or security related. Since there are no signs of improvement in this regard, more and more media outlets are likely to close down”, he feared.
In addition to the cessation of media activity, the escalation of violence and security threats has also led to the resignation of many journalists in the past year and the departure of some abroad.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, about 300 female media workers and about 700 male media workers have resigned in the country in the past six months alone. At the same time, about 50 media workers have left the country.
Seddiqullah Tawhidi, head of the committee, called the increase in violence against journalists as “shocking” and said it was caused a large number of journalists to leave the country. “The 172 cases of violence against journalists from May last year to May this year are shocking,” said Siddiqullah Tawhidi.
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Among the victims in these cases, 43 journalists have left Afghanistan.
This is a statistic registered with the committee and it is possible that many more might have left the country without notifying the committee. “Raging concerns and the current political situation have left no hope for the future of journalism”, he sighed.
As the intra-Afghan negotiations began, violence and targeted assassinations increased dramatically. In such a situation, the media community and journalists face more serious threats than ever before.
ENDS
