(PINA/IFEX) – On 16 August 2000, Fiji Islands news media reported that the country’s new interim administration plans to go ahead with developing new media and broadcasting laws. “The Fiji Times” said a proposed media decree would cover issues such as setting up an independent media council, media code of practice, guidelines on cross-media ownership […]
(PINA/IFEX) – On 16 August 2000, Fiji Islands news media reported that the country’s new interim administration plans to go ahead with developing new media and broadcasting laws. “The Fiji Times” said a proposed media decree would cover issues such as setting up an independent media council, media code of practice, guidelines on cross-media ownership and “qualitative” aspects of broadcast and print media.
“The Fiji Times” said the proposed media legislation would be a follow up to a review of Fiji’s media legislation conducted for a former government in 1996 by the Thomson Foundation of Britain. The newspaper said the proposed legislation is aimed at protecting what the interim Cabinet considers “reasonable and justifiable media freedom.”
In response, PINA said that through its Fiji members it looks forward to discussing the proposed legislation with the interim government. PINA president William Parkinson said PINA also looks forward to working with the government to ensure that this proposed legislation does not infringe on the basic rights of the people to freedom of expression and information.
“We believe this is particularly important at this time in Fiji when we have an interim administration, which has not been democratically elected,” Parkinson said.
He said PINA would like to state clearly that any new attempt to regulate editorial content by any means other than through a truly independent Fiji Media Council would be in clear breach of internationally accepted standards of media freedom. It would be fought vigorously by PINA and its international network of supporting media freedom organisations, he said.
Parkinson added: “I did note in the cabinet release the plans to put in place Newspaper Registration Legislation. PINA has no problem with the use of this type of legislation being used to identify owners and publishers of newspapers. We are concerned that the statement also says that the legislation will be ‘amended to include appropriate penalties for infringement of the proposed Media Act’.”
Parkinson said the revision of media legislation proposed in the Thomson Foundation Report had led the Fiji news media to implement a number of steps recommended by Thomson Foundation consultants working for the then-government.
He said: “The Fiji media on the basis of the Thomson Report went ahead and formed the Fiji Media Council following the guidelines set down in the report. I would hope that the Government in putting this legislation into practice fully recognises the existence of this body and works together with the current media council to implement the legislation. Certainly in discussions with the last two Governments we have been assured that this is their intention.
“With regards to regulation it should be noted that the media in Fiji choose to become members of the council but are not obliged to join. I hope that this freedom is preserved in the new legislation. It is vital that the council remains not only independent but that recognition should remain voluntary.
“The current Fiji Media Council has already established codes of practice covering journalism, advertising and general programming of broadcasters. I would hope that the legislation recognises and adopts these codes that are already in place.
“The media like every person and organisation in our society must accept a level of accountability. It is vital, however, that this accountability is to a truly independent body which reflects the views, culture and traditions of all the people of Fiji.”
BACKGROUND:
The military-backed interim civilian administration now governs the Fiji Islands following a crisis sparked by the 19 May takeover of parliament by indigenous Fijian rebels and the deposing of Fiji’s first ethnic Indian prime minister, Mahendra Chaudhry. The rebels – who held Chaudhry and members of his government hostage – now face treason charges.
In their one year in power, Chaudhry and his Labour Party-led coalition government clashed frequently with the country’s independent news media (see IFEX alerts) and threatened to impose controls on the media. In 1999, there was widespread criticism of threats by Chaudhry to bring in a government-regulated media tribunal with powers to impose penalties on the media.
The Fiji Islands has amongst the most diverse and free news media in the Pacific Islands. They include: three seven-day-a-week English-language daily newspapers; weekly newspapers in Hindi, Fijian, and English; news, business, trade and entertainment magazines; independent commercial, community and religious radio stations; government-owned public and commercial radio stations; and commercial and community television.
Following the 1996 Thomson Foundation review, Fiji’s media industry developed its own news council into a self-regulatory media council along the lines recommended by the Thomson report. It includes an independent chairperson, an equal number of media and public members and an independent complaints committee.
