– says newspapers should use sounder editorial judgement
AN investigation by the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), into complaints that the Office of the President (OP) made against Kaieteur News and Stabroek News, has found that sounder editorial judgement could have been exercised by both newspapers in question,  in reporting statements that have little grounding in fact.
Last July 1, the ERC received from OP, a complaint which contended that articles appearing in Kaieteur News and the Stabroek News “have been promoting racial insecurity, advocating race-based politics and making vile allegations of racist behaviour against members of the Government.”

Some of the articles complained about were ‘King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference’ in Kaieteur News, June 28, 2010; ‘Ruling Class racist ideology is back in vogue in Guyana’ in Kaieteur News, June 30, 2010; ‘Return to Slavery’ in Kaieteur News, June 30, 2010 and a letter captioned ‘Outrage at historical conference must be condemned’ in Stabroek News, June 29, 2010.

QUOTE: “…statements like an ‘Indian oligarchy bent on pulverising the African race’, ‘the dehumanisation of an entire race in Guyana’ and ‘Young Africans in Guyana are told in every way …you are inferior. Only someone from a different race can govern you. You are not smart enough. You are not human enough. You are not worthy enough’ are  unacceptable from the point of view of the Ethnic Relations Commission. These, in the Commission’s considered review, are views that may be calculated and capable of exciting ill will against a particular ethnic grouping. It also may be in breach of the provision of the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act 2001, Act No. 1 of 2001. This the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd (Kaieteur News) should guard zealously against and not allow itself to fall prey to persons who, perhaps, may have a more serious and ominous agenda.” – the ERC

FINDINGS
The ERC launched an investigation into these complaints and, on Tuesday, released its findings.
Acting under Article 212 D of the Constitution of Guyana, the ERC said it considered all the information at its disposal, regarding the said matter and having deliberated on the matter on April 11, 2011, at a specially convened meeting, it adopted the following conclusion on the matter:
“Freedom of expression is guaranteed by Article 146 (1) of the Guyana Constitution and is one of the celebrated principles of the law. This is not an absolute right however and must be practised in a responsible manner.  Article 146 (3) of the Constitution provides that: ‘freedom of expression in this Article does not relate to hate speeches or other expressions, in whatever form capable of exciting ill-will against any person or class of persons’.
“The Commission finds that media houses have an important role to play in society and that this obligation includes the carriage of news and opinions that are truthful and not calculated to mislead the public. The Commission notes that, in a free democracy where press freedom is paramount, the views and opinions of all persons must be respected and that the media operatives should guard against undue censorship. At the same time, this must be balanced with sound editorial oversight, sensitivity, prudence and judgment when going to press.”
With reference to the Kaieteur News articles, the Commission said, while ‘King Kong’ and ‘goons’ may be passing references that may not warrant serious attention, “the Commission, however, finds that sound editorial judgment, scrutiny and consideration should have been exercised where there are extremist references to ‘fascism’ and ‘Hitler’ and for which there is no basis.”

EXAGGERATIONS
The ERC said, while these may be exaggerations, “calculated perhaps to shock,” they could, however, be “misleading and dangerous.”
“Further, statements like an ‘Indian oligarchy bent on pulverising the African race’, ‘the dehumanisation of an entire race in Guyana’ and ‘Young Africans in Guyana are told in every way …you are inferior. Only someone from a different race can govern you. You are not smart enough. You are not human enough. You are not worthy enough’ are  unacceptable from the point of view of the Ethnic Relations Commission. These, in the Commission’s considered review, are views that may be calculated and capable of exciting ill will against a particular ethnic grouping. It also may be in breach of the provision of the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act 2001, Act No. 1 of 2001. This the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd (KN) should guard zealously against and not allow itself to fall prey to persons who, perhaps, may have a more serious and ominous agenda,” the ERC said.
The watchdog body noted that exercising an abundance of caution is often required, particularly since all should be aware of the grave dangers associated with the reporting of spurious and dangerous claims/opinions that can lead to racial tensions in Guyana.”
The report said that such statements serve as a disservice to the work of the ERC “which has been working tirelessly and without pause to dispel deep, entrenched ethnic divisions in this country.”
According to the Commission, it was surprising that, when brought to the attention of the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd, “the response from the company seems to suggest that there is nothing wrong with such statements.”
“The Commission is of the view that the statements published in the Stabroek News cannot, it seems, withstand factual scrutiny and should be the subject of greater editorial oversight, which seems to have been lacking in this regard.
“While it is not the role of the Ethnic Relations Commission to expound or promote censorship of the free press, the hallmark of a true democracy, the Commission will not abdicate its constitutional responsibility and allow the public dissemination of dubious and dangerous information under the guise of freedom of information, or the imparting of information and ideas of public interest, without due comment,” the ERC said.
According to the report, the Commission is of the view that, in a country with a population of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, with a shared history inclusive of division and hate, it does not augur well for responsible media houses to place, into the public domain, information that is racially charged.
Following its findings and conclusions, the ERC recommended that media houses retreat under the auspices of the Guyana Press Association (GPA) or other body to determine their modus operandi in the context of articles that comprised the subject of the report’s review.
“It is imperative that the media, both press and electronic, settle on the way forward on these matters with a view to determining a code for reviewing of same and which may guide media practitioners in this regard,” the Commission said. It added that it would welcome such an initiative and will be happy to be a part of that process.
The ERC urged that media houses familiarise themselves with the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act 2001 and the Racial Hostility Act and the consequences of breaching their provisions.

BACKGROUND
The annual academic conference of the Guyana Historical Institute held in the Conference Hall of the National Library on June 26, 2010 according to media reports was disrupted briefly by a number of hecklers when a Kaieteur News columnist and University of Guyana Lecturer rose to give his presentation.

The said columnist, wrote the following article: ‘King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference’ –Kaieteur News, June 28, 2010, which is the subject of one of the complaints received by the ERC.

The KN article, in brief, refers to a number of ‘goon elements,’ who are ‘beasts’ and who had been sent by ‘King Kong.’ It notes that the ‘dictators who rule over Guyanese are expanding their fascist terror’ and that the President’s exercise of power is ‘driven by the practice of ideological racism.’

The writer further goes on to say, inter alia, that the ‘contempt for African Guyanese by an Indian racist regime has reached horrible levels. This cabal runs Guyana in favour of the East Indian population but uses their very victims to bolster their diminishing power base.’

The writer insinuates that all of the ‘dirty foot soldiers are African Guyanese’ and that ‘a racist, Indian oligarchy bent on pulverizing the African race in Guyana cannot find one, single Indian to recruit for goon service’ that ‘we are witnessing the dehumanization of an entire race in Guyana’ and that it is a ‘fascist version of a deadly racism never before seen in these parts of the world…’

This premise was subsequently echoed in a letter to the editor titled ‘Return to slavery’ (June 30, 2010 –Kaieteur News) and which states that: ‘Africans are surely returning to slavery. President Hoyte once said they (the PPP) prey on poor Africans and recruit them to do their dirty work. When their usefulness expires they turnaround and execute them to cover their tracks.’

Another complaint to the ERC, by OP, had to do with a letter published in the Stabroek News on June 29, 2010 and signed by a number of persons, and titled: ‘Outrage at historical conference must be condemned.’  Referring to the said conference at the National Library (June 26, 2010) it was stated that: ‘We were ashamed at this latest example of the hiring of African-Guyanese women and men (and no doubt cheaply) to perform transparent, slimy acts of intimidation on behalf of a government which has reduced them to this level of degradation.’

In another letter titled: ‘Ruling Class racist ideology is back in vogue in Guyana’ – Kaieteur News, June 30, 2010, there are a number of statements that are made including the allegation that there is  a ‘coercive psychological war that directly and indirectly states that no African Guyanese is qualified to be President of Guyana.’

It goes on to state that ‘ daily in Guyanese politics we see the ugly smiling faces of the race card. It is always played by the PPP…’ and ‘Young Africans in Guyana are told in every way …you are inferior. Only someone from a different race can govern you. You are not smart enough. You are not human enough. You are not worthy enough. This sounds like the arguments about slavery…’

The writer refers to this situation as ‘racial demagoguery. It is racial profiling. It is domestic terrorism of the mental type. It is subliminal. It is wicked. It is Hiterlike. It is psychological warfare.’

Based on the above complaints, the ERC said it requested comments from the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd (Kaieteur News) outlining the complaint to the company. On August 27, 2010, the company responded to the ERC stating that it disagreed with the allegations being made against it. In brief, the ERC said the company found that the reference to ‘King Kong’ was in no way intended to ‘ferment racial strife’ noting that there is racism in the United States of America and that it exists also in Guyana.

The Commission also indicated that it requested a comment from the Guyana Publications Inc (Stabroek News) outlining the complaint to the company and received a response on August 17, 2010 which requested a copy of the original complaint. The ERC said it requested the  said information from the Office of the President, but to date that has not been received. The Commission also indicated that,  to date, it has not  received a response to the complaint from the GPI (Stabroek News).