(MISA/IFEX) – The government of Zimbabwe has evoked the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act to amend the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) Act and the Broadcasting Services Act 2001 to form a new company that will provide transmission services to broadcasters. The amendment will also make ZBC a duly licensed broadcasting entity under the Broadcasting Services […]
(MISA/IFEX) – The government of Zimbabwe has evoked the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act to amend the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) Act and the Broadcasting Services Act 2001 to form a new company that will provide transmission services to broadcasters.
The amendment will also make ZBC a duly licensed broadcasting entity under the Broadcasting Services Act, which came into effect on 4 April 2001 (see IFEX alerts of 10, 9, 6 and 5 April, 28, 19 and 12 March and 21 February 2001, 26, 19, 12 and 5 October, 28, 25 and 20 September 2000).
“The information and publicity minister, after consultation with the president, shall nominate the shareholders of the new company. Any person so appointed shall do so nominally as an agent of the state,” reads part of the statutory instrument.
In addition to overseeing the broadcasting spectrum, the new company will provide satellite broadcasting services and subscription television services. The company is also mandated to expand multi-media services by providing Internet, Web development and e-commerce services across the country.
Another of the company’s roles will be to provide a state of the art production plant for audio-tape, compact discs and digital videodiscs and to set up sound recording studios and facilities for video and film production.
The justification for the statutory instrument is that the transitional period granted by the Broadcasting Services Act 2001 expired on 4 July and therefore there was a need to extend the period in order to process the issuance of licenses to broadcasters.
The statutory instrument gives the signal company the license to carry out services that were operated by the ZBC. Section 47 of the Broadcasting Services Act 2001 technically gave the ZBC a three-month interim license, which expired on 4 July. The statutory instrument amends the three-month transitional period by extending the time frame to nine months. The instrument will be in force for the extra six months, prior to being taken to Parliament for enactment into law.
Analysts have stated that the latest presidential decree is yet another attempt by the government to tighten screws on the dissemination of information. According to the “Zimbabwe Independent”, an analyst said that the extended services of the Signal Company makes it a pliant apparatus of the government in information dissemination and production of propaganda materials in the form of films and videos. This latest development also means that private stations that use the Signal Company will not be free to air any programmes seen as critical of the government, as this would result in them being cut off.
