…says legislation does not prevent media freedom

PRESIDENT David Granger is asking critics of the Broadcast (Amendment) Bill 2017 to be more aware of the peculiar nature of Guyana and the need to ensure that all communities have access to information.
He said the Bill does not prevent any media outlet from fulfilling its constitutional obligations and the government has an obligation to ensure via the media that the entire country is aware of what is going on.

Acknowledging that there are some aspects of the Bill that have caused concern, the Head of State told media operatives Wednesday at State House that a lot of thought went into crafting the bill.
He noted that Cabinet’s support of the Bill was the reason why government went to parliament.

“Guyana is a very thinly populated country and the population density is about a few persons per square kilometer and most of the media houses are concentrated on the coastland and in the city of Georgetown, so there are huge areas of our country without media coverage,” President Granger explained “We need to ensure that we walk on two legs and the private media have my support and I will always support freedom of communication, but we have an obligation to ensure that all corners of the country receive public information about what is taking place in terms of public health, public infrastructure and public security.”

He said if the population is unaware of what is happening in certain sections of Guyana because the media is concentrated in Georgetown, there will be a deficit in the flow of information.
Earlier this month, the Broadcast (Amendment) Bill 2017 was passed in Parliament. It was tabled by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, who has ministerial responsibility for public information.

The 2011 Act was introduced by the then PPP government. Section 18 (1) (i) of the Act states that the Guyana Broadcasting Authority, which regulates local broadcasting, shall require operators to carry public service announcements free of charge. The Act further states that the Broadcasting Authority shall: “Require licensees to carry a certain percentage of public service broadcast or development support broadcasts as public information deems appropriate as a public service at no cost.”

The Act did not put a cap on how long or how frequently such announcements were to be aired. This was left up to the discretion of the government. However, one of the amendments seeks to rectify this by putting a daily cap of up to one hour on the broadcast time for public service announcements. This has since been rejected by several private operators who contend that it is an imposition on their air time.

Prime Minister Nagamootoo in a statement issued on Saturday, said the sentiments proffered by some critics form part of the “partisan political propaganda against the need for modern legislative changes in Guyana,” and that for the most part, they are “Opposition-driven allegations.”
In fact, Nagamootoo believes the President’s assent to the legislation “cannot be delayed by vested and parochial political interests, and by misconceived or misinformed arguments…the amendments are required with some urgency.”

According to the prime minister, there has been a “gross misunderstanding” and “in a few instances, deliberate misrepresentation” of the recent amendments to the Broadcast Act, which was signed into law in September 2011 by the then president, Bharrat Jagdeo.
“It is apparent that those who have expressed some sort of opposition to the amendments did not examine carefully the provisions of the 2011 Act, which the amendments seek to give effect, as authorised by the said Act.

In most cases, the amendments give clarity to certain sections and also, add certainty to them,” said the prime minister. He noted too that the amendments were recommended by the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority (GNBA), and were tabled in the National Assembly as an Amendment Bill, after statutory consultation with the National Frequency Management Unit (NFMU), as required by the 2011 Act.

Additionally, the prime minister said the broadcasting policy ensures compliance by broadcasters with the Constitution and laws of Guyana and requires them not to incite violence, ethnic, religious or cultural hostility. It provides for review of broadcasting rules that regulate content that violates the Constitution, stimulates sexual violence and abuses women and children’s rights among other areas.

Broadcasting agencies will not be allowed to broadcast advertisements or programmes which contain hate speech, racial incitement or terror threats.
“This cannot be an interference with free speech! This is in keeping with the Guyana Constitution which, in Article 146 (3), states that ‘Freedom of expression does not relate to hate speech or other expressions, capable of exciting hostility.’”

“It is my strong and confident submission that freedom of the press or of expression is not violated where any law provides for an action to be taken in the interest of defence, public safety, public order, public morality or public health; or for regulating broadcasting or television services,” the prime minister continued.
In the case of re-application, Nagamootoo made it clear that depending on the class of service or zone to which the licence is granted, all broadcasters including the State radio and television, have to fill out the new application forms that are part of the Broadcasting Regulations (the Amendment).

This has been the requirement since 2011, as the Act stipulates that all legitimate broadcasters must submit applications for continuation of broadcasting within 30 days of the said Act coming into effect. A person who wanted to start a broadcasting service had to apply for a licence under the new conditions in the Act.

“The 2017 amendment Bill re-applies this requirement for submission of application in keeping with the classes of licences, the zoning for operations and the adjusted fees for the different zones. This is a practical measure, and logical within the context of the adjusted broadcasting landscape, which was done in full conformity with the existing Broadcasting law,” the prime minister concluded.