Journeys to Democracy, a blog by Pakistani journalist Beena Sarwar, provides stories about current political and social happenings in Pakistan. Beena Sarwar has had experience in journalism, writing, teaching, media consulting, and documentary filmmaking. Currently, her Journeys to Democracy blog has over 500,000 hits and it provides links to tweets regarding stories similar to those provided on her blog.

Recently, Beena Sarwar has posted about the disappearances of political activists in Pakistan. Journalists and activists have faced considerable scrutiny from the Pakistani government for writing about or promoting disapproval for government actions. In extreme cases, journalists and activists have been abducted which is a major cause for concern in Beena Sarwar’s line of work. One specific case highlighted by Beena Sarwar is the disappearance of political activist Raza Khan, who was illegally abducted in Lahore after coordinating public events that promote peace and cooperation with India. She highlights how journalists covering this case have even faced the threat of abduction and beating at the hands of government agents. It is interesting to see how Beena Sarwar, a journalist herself, covers the repression that other activists and journalists face in Pakistan. I am also interested to see just how many other journalists and activists in Pakistan draw attention to such events and other government actions against Pakistani citizens.

Link: https://beenasarwar.com/2018/01/24/raza-khan-still-missing-why-does-it-matter/#more-11602

Campbell Wood. March 31 2018.