(AMARC/IFEX) – The following is an abridged version of a 16 November 2004 AMARC press release: AMARC Satisfied with Parliamentary Resolution that Permits Civil Society Access to Radio and Television Frequencies Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies has approved a bill that amends Article 45 of the country’s Broadcasting Law (Ley de Radiodifusión). The Supreme Court has […]
(AMARC/IFEX) – The following is an abridged version of a 16 November 2004 AMARC press release:
AMARC Satisfied with Parliamentary Resolution that Permits Civil Society Access to Radio and Television Frequencies
Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies has approved a bill that amends Article 45 of the country’s Broadcasting Law (Ley de Radiodifusión). The Supreme Court has on several occasions declared the law to be unconstitutional and incompatible with the Pact of San José, Costa Rica. Approved with 146 votes in favour, 2 against and 10 abstentions, the amendments will permit broadcast licencing of civil society and non-profit entities, eliminating restrictions that only grant the right to broadcast to commercial businesses. These restrictions date back to the time of the country’s dictatorship.
AMARC considers the Chamber of Deputies’ approval to be a positive development since it recognises the right of citizens to express themselves using any means available and it brings Argentina closer to compliance with international freedom of expression standards. The bill must be approved by the Senate before it will take effect.
“In Argentine legislation, companies are still considered to be the only entities that have the right to receive, disseminate and investigate information and opinions by way of a particular medium, such as broadcasting,” said Damián Loreti, director of Buenos Aires University’s communications programme and legal advisor for AMARC-ALC [Latin America and the Caribbean]. He added that “the result, presumably, is that media outlets can not be owned or operated by cooperatives, foundations, school groups, local community groups, indigenous organisations, labour unions or other civil society organisations.”
According to Néstor Busso, president of the Argentine Community Radios Forum (Foro Argentino de Radios Comunitarias, FARCO) this is “only one step forward, but it is an essential step, achieved by FARCO and other organisations that have been fighting for this amendment for 10 years.”
While the bill was being debated by the Chamber of Deputies, the broadcasting law, which was developed under the country’s dictatorship and is still in effect, was seriously questioned and the need for a new law was raised.
