(AMARC/IFEX) – In letters to President Vicente Fox and Interior Minister Santiago Creel Miranda, AMARC has expressed “great concern over the harassment campaign against Mexican community radio stations waged in recent months by the Mexican army and the Communications and Transport Secretariat [Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes, SCT]”. AMARC urged the government to stem the […]
(AMARC/IFEX) – In letters to President Vicente Fox and Interior Minister Santiago Creel Miranda, AMARC has expressed “great concern over the harassment campaign against Mexican community radio stations waged in recent months by the Mexican army and the Communications and Transport Secretariat [Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes, SCT]”.
AMARC urged the government to stem the military’s increasing involvement in matters related to freedom of expression and not to national security. According to complaints received by AMARC in Mexico, military officials have been investigating, denouncing and harassing some community radio stations, particularly in the states of Oaxaca and Michoacán.
The organisation also urged the authorities to ensure that discussions at the Civil Society Roundtable will continue. The roundtable was created to address necessary changes to broadcasting legislation, which is considered by many to be anachronistic, discriminatory and secretive (see IFEX alert of 16 October 2002).
Furthermore, AMARC also called for the speedy approval of a bill brought before Congress by civil society groups in late 2002. The bill seeks legal and just ways to provide access to radio and television frequencies for those citizens who currently face restrictions. AMARC noted that the right to transmit information is internationally recognised and considered fundamental to constructing a more solid democracy. The organisation also remarked that unhindered access to broadcasting is particularly important in Mexico, given the high concentration in ownership of radio and television media.
In its 24 March 2003 letter, AMARC urged the Mexican government to condemn the actions of the National Radio and Television Industry Assembly (Cámara Nacional de la Industria de la Radio y la Television, CIRT), currently headed by Jorge Mendoza Garza, vice-president of the TV Azteca television station. The CIRT is pressuring the SCT and the army to repress community radio stations.
According to AMARC, “people’s willingness to create community radio stations should not be seen as a problem, but as an opportunity and a reflection of democratic advances in the country. This willingness also demonstrates an understanding of the importance of an egalitarian and just development and the promotion of a culture of respect and tolerance, whereby civil society can participate, express opinions and help formulate proposals.”
Finally, AMARC expressed concern about the current climate and asked President Fox, “to protect the rights of individuals involved in community radio stations and protect them from possible attacks against them and against freedom of expression.”
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
– calling on them to maintain the Round Table for the Complete Revision of the Federal Radio and Television Law
– asking them to prevent any repressive action against community radio stations
– urging them to ensure that radio journalists can freely exercise their profession and their right to freedom of expression without fear of harassment or attacks
Appeals To
Vicente Fox
Presidency of the Republic
E-mail: webadmon@op.presidencia.gob.mx, radio@presidencia.gob.mx
Santiago Creel Miranda
Interior Ministry
E-mail: ghuerta@segob.gob.mx, screel@segob.gob.mx
Dr. Ricardo Sepúlveda
Section for the Promotion and Defence of Human Rights
E-mail: rsepulveda@segob.gob.mx
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
