Opposition political parties and media organisations have slammed the new licensing system introduced by the Media Minister for TV broadcasting as “illegal” and “undemocratic”, but the minister has defended the move saying they are needed to bring “uniformity” in this field.
Some of the new regulations include the issuing of a licence valid for only one year, subject to renewal upon application, restrictions on broadcasting programmes detrimental to the interest of national security in violation of any laws of the country, morally offensive or indecent, revocation of the licence and disqualification from applying for a new licence for five years if regulations are found to have been violated.
The regulations also place restrictions on satellite and cable television operations in the country. (See box for more details of regulations)
Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe charged that the laws are only meant to increase the personal control that President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family members have over the media and not due to concerns for the public.
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| The joint Opposition news conference in progress on Friday at the Opposition Leader’s office at Cambridge Place.
Pic by Sanka Vidanagama |
“The space for democracy is gradually eroding under the administration of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and all sorts of pressures are being brought upon the private media so as to hide the inefficiency of this government,” he said.The Opposition Leader addressed a joint news conference on Friday, with SLFP (M) Leader MP Mangala Samaraweera and SLMC Leader MP Rauff Hakeem to express their strong protest at the new regulations and pledged to take whatever measures necessary, both in and outside parliament, to have the regulations withdrawn.
“This government has been enacting regulations to control the media since it took office and this is another one of those steps. These draconian regulations are to enable the government to take over the private media and control of cable television operators,” Mr. Hakeem said.
He alleged that though the regulations have been signed by the Minister, they have been brought out at the insistence of others.
Mr. Samaraweera said when he warned last year that the country was heading towards a dictatorship, straying away from the centralist policies of the SLFP, not many were inclined to believe him. “I think today everyone will believe what I have been saying is correct. When the war is sagging, when the cost of living is increasing, the Government is trying to control the media to hide these truths,” he said.
“This Government first tried to buy over journalists and when that failed they turned to other means to control them. I am glad to say that the majority of the journalists have not given into the inducements offered by the government or given in to threats,” he added.
Mr. Samaraweera who was the Media Minister under former President, Chandrika Kumaratunga defended his role during the time, saying that even though he used the state media to air the views of the Government in power, opposition parties too were allowed to use these institutions.
Meanwhile, Media Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa told a news briefing on Friday that the regulations are needed to bring about uniformity in the fast growing electronic media broadcasting field.
“The same rules must apply to all television stations and these regulations were introduced for this purpose,” he said.
He said that there have been many complaints received from members of the public against television stations and the regulations will empower an advisory council to look into those as well.
The new regulations
What does the government seek to achieve through the new regulations which it promulgated on October 10 under Section 31 of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation Act, No 6 of 1982?
Called the Private Television Broadcasting Station Regulations, the new rules seek to classify a private television broadcasting station as international, country-wide or regional station based on the area to which its broadcast extends.
An international station is identified as one that has an authorised area of coverage which extends beyond the territory of Sri Lanka and which may cover a part or whole of the country. A country-wide station is one that has coverage area which reaches the entire territory of Sri Lanka while a regional station’s authorised area of coverage extends to a number of divisional Secretariat areas, which may be covered in part or in full.
Here are some of the
new regulations:-
General conditions applicable to
licences.
- A licence issued shall be valid for one year from the date of issue and may thereafter be renewed for a further period of one year each, upon an application for a renewal of the licence being made by the licensee.
A licence can be cancelled on
several grounds including
- A change in ownership of the television broadcasting station in respect of which the licence was issued and all other associated movable, immovable and intellectual assets which includes a change in the shareholding of the licensee a company, without the prior approval of the minister.
- A change in the name of the licensee without, the prior approval of the minister
- Assigning in full or part of the rights granted under the licence to another party, without prior approval of the minister, non payment of licence fee or any other fees required to be paid under these regulations and broadcasting programs which are detrimental to the interest of national security, inciting breakdown of public order, inciting ethnic, religious or cultural hatred, in violation of any laws of the country, morally offensive or indecent, detrimental to the rights and privileges of children and in violation of the code of ethics, standards and operations of television broadcasting.
- The Consultative Committee on Television Broadcasting shall monitor the performance of all licensees to ensure due compliance with the provisions of these Regulations and evaluate the eligibility of a licence for renewal
- The validity of a licence issued shall be limited to the number and the identity of the programme channels described in the licence, the number and identity of the broadcast transmitting stations described in the licence, the area of broadcast coverage described in the licence and the mode of broadcasting described in the licence.
- The regulations also cover special conditions applicable to broadcasting or re broadcasting of television programmes using satellite, cable or both as media of reception.
- The licences shall provide information regarding particulars of every subscriber, technical and other details of terminal equipment, including decoders supplied to the respective subscriber.
- Every satellite or cable television operator shall facilitate the re-broadcast of at least two of the channels broadcast by Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC) upon request by the latter , through his network.
- The SLRC channels referred to shall be re-broadcast without any deletion or alternation.
- No channel shall broadcast transmission which originate outside the territory of Sri Lanka for the view of the public within Sri Lanka, unless the permission for the same has been obtained from the minister.
- A recognised political party shall not be eligible to obtain a licence for the establishment or maintenance of a private television broadcasting station or network
- Where any person to whom a licence is issued thereafter becomes a member of a recognised political party during the period of validity of the licence, he shall be required to immediately surrender his licence.
- In the event any licensee is found to have used a channel for transmitting any objectionable unauthorised content, messages, or communication inconsistent with public interests or national security or failing to comply with other provisions of the regulations, the Minister shall refer such matter to the Consultative Committee on Television Broadcasting for purpose of holding an inquiry pertaining to the same.
The Committee after holding an inquiry may recommend to the Minister the revocation of the licence and may also recommend that such licensee be disqualified from being issued a licence for five years thereafter.
We will go to Supreme Court, say media groups
Five leading media organisations in the country called on the government to withdraw the new regulations gazetted and which became effective from October 24.
The Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA), Federation of Media Employees Trade Union (FMETU), Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum (SLMMF), Sri Lanka Tamil Journalists Alliance (SLTJA) and the Free Media Movement (FMM) made this request at a joint news conference at the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI) on Thursday.
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| Sunanda Deshapriya |
Sunanda Deshapriya FMM spokesman said the regulations will be challenged in the Supreme Court this week as they are “illegal” and “unconstitutional”.
“This is an attempt by the Government to take private television stations under state control. This government has no understanding of what media freedom is,” Mr. Deshapriya said.
Mr.Deshapriya said that media organisations are for the creation of an independent Broadcasting Authority to regulate broadcasting in the country but what the new regulations will do is give power to a minister to regulate the private media.
He added that the regulations are vague and could be used to clamp down on news web sites and internet sites as well.
“The people of this country as well as all other organisations must oppose these regulations” he said.
Among those who condemned these regulations at the news conference were the Director General of the SLPI Ranga Kalansooriya, SLWJA President Sanath Balasuriya, Editor of the Irida Lakbima Sundara Nihathamani De Mel, spokesman of Editors’ Guild, FMETU’s Dharmasiri Lankapali and Uvindu Kurukulasuriya Convenor FMM. | 
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