Zambia: Formally table your complaints, Government urges MISA

The Government has implored the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) regional body to formally table its complaints regarding media law formulation to Government instead of issuing negative statement.

Acting Chief Government spokesperson Mike Mulongoti said the MISA regional office should write to Government indicating exactly what they want addressed.

MISA regional director Kaitira Kandji said in a statement that Government’s insistence on a statutory media self-regulation mechanism was inappropriate, unnecessary and aimed at nothing but controlling the media.

Mr Mulongoti, who is Works and Supply Minister, maintained that Government would be left with no option but to regulate the media on account of public policy consideration if the Media Liaison Committee (MLC) fails to develop a self-regulatory framework.

“We have allowed the media to grow. You have seen how many television stations, radio stations we have but what we want is some level of responsibility,” he said.

He said self-regulation was supposed to benefit the general public and not just the media.

“We expect the media to conduct themselves in a responsible manner. This is not a new project, it has been on the cards for a very long time. I do not think the media has done its home work,” he said.

In a statement, Mr Kandji accused the Government of insincerity over media self-regulation.

“This stance by Government is in bad faith and a strategy to curtail media independence and freedom in Zambia. It is unacceptable and gravely worrying that Government should seek to impose its will and overturn the Fringilla Consensus on what self-regulatory system best suits the media,” he said.

Zambian media have made credible efforts to develop a mechanism to regulate themselves under very difficult circumstances.

Mr Kandji said Government had a duty to support and not to impose statutory regulation.

- April 28, 2010 by The Times of Zambia
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Source: www.times.co.zm/news/viewnews.cgi (accessed on 28.04.2010)