Chad: Privately-owned radio station threatened with closure in N'Djamena
On 26 May 2004, High Council for Communications (Haut conseil de la communication, HCC) President Moussa Dago threatened to order the closure of FM Liberté, a community radio station based in the capital, N'Djamena. In a letter to FM Liberté's director, the HCC president criticised the station for airing a commercial, between 19 and 25 May, in which a collective of civil society groups commented on the draft amendment to the country's Constitution. The HCC said the commercial was of a political nature, thereby violating the broadcast law governing private radio stations in the country and opening the door to penalties.
IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
_________________________________________________________________
ALERT - CHAD
4 June 2004
Privately-owned radio station threatened with closure in N'Djamena
SOURCE: Journaliste en danger (JED), Kinshasa
(JED/IFEX) - On 26 May 2004, High Council for Communications (Haut conseil
de la communication, HCC) President Moussa Dago threatened to order the
closure of FM Liberté, a community radio station based in the capital,
N'Djamena.
In a letter to FM Liberté's director, the HCC president criticised the
station for airing a commercial, between 19 and 25 May, in which a
collective of civil society groups commented on the draft amendment to the
country's Constitution. The HCC said the commercial was of a political
nature, thereby violating the broadcast law governing private radio stations
in the country and opening the door to penalties.
In their commercial, the civil society groups urged Chadian citizens to
launch a one-day strike action and reject the proposed constitutional
amendment. They said the purpose of the amendment is to allow President
Idris Deby to extend his mandate indefinitely.
Commenting on the HCC's accusations and threat, FM Liberté editor-in-chief
Evariste Ngaralbaye said, "The statement [concerning the constitutional
amendment] was not made in the context of a political programme or news
bulletin, but was just like any other regular paid commercial. We consider
it to be nothing more that an announcement bringing in revenue for the
station."
For further information, contact D. M'Baya Tshimanga, president, Journaliste
en danger (JED), B.P. 633 Kinshasa 1, Democratic Republic of Congo, tel:
+243 99 29 323/+243 81513 05 85, fax: +243 88 01 625, e-mail:
[email protected], [email protected], Internet:
http://www.jed-congo.org
The information contained in this alert is the sole responsibility of JED.
In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit JED.
_________________________________________________________________
DISTRIBUTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
EXCHANGE (IFEX) CLEARING HOUSE
489 College Street, Toronto (ON) M6G 1A5 CANADA
tel: +1 416 515 9622 fax: +1 416 515 7879
alerts email: [email protected] general e-mail: [email protected]
Internet site: http://www.ifex.org/
_________________________________________________________________