Pakistan's minister for information last night told Pakistani journalists working in the UAE that they have a 'duty' to condemn extremism, and to portray their home country in an objective light.
At a reception at the Pakistan Sports and Recreation Club in Dubai, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Information & Broadcasting, said expat journalists here have more 'visibility' than media workers in Pakistan - and therefore, hold an important role in combating mindsets that have allowed extremism to thrive in Pakistan and beyond.
Kaira was addressing a large group of Pakistani expats, gathered to celebrate the launch of the Pakistan Journalists' Forum UAE (PJF), which is part of the Pakistan Association Dubai. The PJF is the first group of its type outside of Pakistan.
The minister condemned the "separatist views and terrorism" that have hit Pakistan over recent years.
"Unfortunately there's less unity within [Pakistan], but here in the UAE they're... forging unity within the community," he said.
Addressing the UAE-based Pakistani journalists present in the audience, the minister underlined the importance of the media's role.
"We have to work towards condemning terrorism... The journalists' forum can be very helpful in spreading the message. It is a fight of mindsets - and you [the media] have a very important role to play. It's not an expectation, it's a duty. The entire world is looking at this region, so you are more visible than the people in Pakistan."
Ashfaq Ahmed, president of the PJF, and chief reporter at Gulf News, said that the PJF's "biggest task" is to put forward a more balanced view of both Pakistan and the UAE.
"A lot of negative things are written about the UAE and Pakistan, but we want to conquer that, and want to tell people what the real story is... We're not saying we won't criticise - we will. But then, it needs to be positive criticism," he added.
There are other journalists' groups in the UAE, such as the Dubai Press Club and the UAE Journalists' Association.
Ahmed said that the the role of the "non-political" PJF is primarily social, and that it will help forge interaction between the 65 Pakistani journalists in the UAE - and media workers of other nationalities. He added that the PJF hopes to form similar operations across the GCC.