A federation is only as strong as the members who show up for it. Every service we run exists because a working journalist asked for it.
As President of the Pakistan Journalist Federation, my responsibility is the day-to-day one: making sure that what we promise members is actually delivered, in every district where we have a chapter.
That means a press card that is verified and respected. It means a legal aid cell that answers the phone when a colleague is served a notice or taken into custody. It means welfare assistance that reaches a family quickly, without a member having to plead for it. These are not favours — they are what membership is for.
Journalism in Pakistan is changing faster than our institutions have kept up with. Newsrooms are shrinking, more of us are working freelance without contracts or cover, and the risks of reporting online are now as serious as the risks of reporting in the field. Our training programme has been built around that reality: digital security, source protection, ethical practice and hostile-environment preparation.
I would ask every member to use the Federation rather than simply belong to it. Attend your chapter meetings. Report incidents to us, however minor they seem — our record of what journalists face in this country is only as complete as what you tell us. Bring younger colleagues in, especially those working without the protection of a large organisation behind them.
The Federation belongs to its members. My commitment is to keep it responsive, keep it accountable to you, and make sure no journalist in Pakistan has to stand alone.
With respect and solidarity,
Abbas Ahmed
President, Pakistan Journalist Federation