IFJ Asia-Pacific’s Monthly E-Bulletin March 2012

In this bulletin:

1. Beheading of Journalist in Afghanistan
2. Proposed Electoral Reporting Reforms in Malaysia
3. Violent Threats to Journalist in Papua New Guinea
4. China Urged to Uphold Post-Olympic Press Freedom Promises
5. Senior Newspaper Staff Sacked for Reporting Inflation Concerns in China
6. Intimidation and Editorial Interference in Korean Public Broadcaster
7. Burma’s New Media Law May Fail to Ensure Press Freedom
8. Caution Advised Over Fiji’s New Decree
9. Journalists Charged with Criminal Defamation in Mongolia
10. Hong Kong’s Fire Services Department Urged to Review Media Policy
11. Shocking Murder of Journalist and Family in India

1. Beheading of Journalist in Afghanistan

Journalist Khadem Bhadurzoy was killed by insurgents groups in Urgon District of Paktika Province in south eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday February 21, 2012. Mr Bahadurzoy was station manager for the Mehman (Melma) Radio station, which was established with financial support from the Government of the United States of America. He was also head of a local youth organization.

A number of unknown armed men entered Bhadurzoy’s house on February 21, taking him to an unknown location. Bahadorzoy’s family found his decapitated body on the morning of Wednesday February 22.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/ifj-condemns-beheading-of-journalist-in-afghanistan

2. Proposed Electoral Reporting Reforms in Malaysia

On January 25, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) proposed reforms to electoral reporting in Malaysia. The NUJ submitted its proposal to Malaysia’s Parliamentary Select Committee on Electoral Reforms, which has sought public submissions regarding proposed measures to aid the conducting of free and fair elections. The Committee’s work will feed into a report to be tabled for debate by legislators during the March sitting of Malaysia’s Parliament.

Changes proposed by the NUJ’s submission include:
- For the Election Commission of Malaysia to form a media-monitoring committee, mandated to issue guidelines to print, broadcast and on-line media during the election period.
- Campaigning by incumbent government and opposition parties during the election period on state run news agencies to be allocated based on the percentage of parliamentary seats won in the previous election or on parliamentary seats being contested.
- Equal time allocated to both the caretaker government and opposition for live campaigning over broadcast media.
- Equal access to purchasing of advertising space within media publications to all political parties.
- Commitments to fair and balanced reporting by all public and private media.
- For the media-monitoring committee to draft regulations that enforce regulations related to conduct under the Election Act (1958), and
- Oversight by the Electoral Commission to ensure that police exercise diligence and promptness in approving permits for political parties and independent candidates to conduct public meetings.

Although the current term of Malaysia’s national government is not due to end until 2013, there has been widespread media speculation that an early general election will be called in the first quarter of 2012.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/ifj-supports-proposed-electoral-reporting-reforms-in-malaysia

3. Violent Threats to Journalist in Papua New Guinea

Soldiers at the Murray Barracks in the Papua New Guinea capital of Port Moresby threatened to shoot PNGFM reporter Tauna George on Thursday January 26. George, a resident at the Barracks, had rushed to the front gates to see why shots were being fired randomly on the same morning. As he approached the main office to request an interview, four soldiers ordered him to sit down, searched him, removed his phone, notebook and pen, and threatened to shoot him.
Allegations of intimidation of journalists in Papua New Guinea have increased in recent weeks.

Also on January 26, ABC PNG journalist Firmin Nanol was denied access to a Press Conference and verbally abused by Department of Defence staff member, Benny Sandeka, apparently in response to his reporting of recent political events in Papua New Guinea.

Journalists in the Papua New Guinean television stations National Broadcasting Corporation and EMTV have also reported increased levels of self-censorship. The PFF report notes that management decisions have become increasingly delayed, with a number of prepared news bulletins being withdrawn prior to broadcast due to perceived ‘imbalance’. In two cases, talk-back callers to an NBC live show were asked on-air if their comments were going to be for or against the O'Neill government.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/violent-threats-to-journalist-in-papua-new-guinea

4. China Urged to Uphold Post-Olympic Press Freedom Promises

A number of China-based foreign journalists have been barred from entering ethnic Tibetan areas to investigate a series of recent self-immolation incidents. According to a CNN report, Chinese authorities have imposed a security cordon preventing journalists entering ethnic Tibetan areas of China’s southern Sichuan Province. It is reported that journalists were barred from entering the area by police in Sichuan, citing a variety of different excuses. Other foreign journalists report being followed by unidentified people, being escorted by police back to the airport, being questioning over multiple hours by police, being forced to delete images from their cameras and having their research and writing materials confiscated.

According to the Article 17 of China’s Regulations on Reporting Activities in China by Foreign Journalists, foreign journalists are free to interview all individuals in China once they have obtained the interviewee’s consent.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/ifj-urges-china-to-uphold-post-olympic-press-freedom-promises

5. Senior Newspaper Staff Sacked for Reporting Inflation Concerns in China

The entire senior management team of Biancheng Evening Newspaper, including the Editor-in-chief, were sacked after publishing a report in which citizens of Huaihua, a prefecture-level city of Hunan Province in south central China, complained about increased inflation before the New Year.

On February 1, the Biancheng Evening Newspaper published an article titled, “how does your lunar new year taste?” The article reported a survey of local residents that found that more than 50% of respondents were dissatisfied with increasing inflation, although more than 80% of respondents were satisfied with their social security. In the article, people also complained that the city had not organized any official activities to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

On 3 February, Luo Xiaoming, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, and two deputy editors-in-chief were sacked by the propaganda department of Huaihua. No reason was given for their removal.

According to a Chinese journalist close to story, the government of Huaihua was unhappy with the report on the Lunar New Year which highlighted the city’s increasing inflation rate. It is alleged that government officials were concerned that the report implied inaction on their part to address public dissatisfaction caused by rising inflation and a lack of formal Lunar New Year celebrations.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/senior-newspaper-staff-sacked-for-reporting-inflation-concerns-in-china

6. Intimidation and Editorial Interference in Korean Public Broadcaster

There are grave concerns over reports of intimidation of union members and interference in reporting and editing of the South Korean public broadcaster MBCTV. On January 25, 170 MBCTV news reporters and cameramen staged a ‘walk out’ demonstration in the lobby of MBC TV, in response to alleged interference in the broadcaster’s editorial independence and the intimidation of union members. Since then, MBCTV union members have held daily rallies and picketed in the streets to seek public support for their struggle. Members have reported incidents of intimidation, directed at those taking part in the demonstrations.

Employees at the public broadcaster, and their unions, are concerned by government controls on state media and their diminished independence due to strong ties between high-ranking government officers and media company managements. The MBCTV union previously took strike action to protect freedom of speech at MBCTV in 2010, after which many union members, including the union president, were dismissed.

See: http://asiapacificifj.org/en/articles/reports-of-intimidation-and-editorial-interference-in-korean-public-broadcaster

7. Burma’s New Media Law May Fail to Ensure Press Freedom

There are concerns that Burma’s proposed new media law may not guarantee freedom of media as the government promised. The new media law, drafted by the Ministry of Information’s Press Scrutinization and Registration Department (PSRD) was introduced in January at a media workshop jointly organized by Myanmar Writers and Journalists Association and Singapore-based Asia Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC).

Despite inviting local journalists, foreign-based Burmese journalists and journalists from Asian countries to the two-day event, the participants were not given the opportunity to thoroughly discuss the substance of the law. According to Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), Mr. Tint Swe, the Deputy Director General of the PSRD only presented the Table of Contents of the draft law but no details of the law itself. Sources close to the PSRD told the BMA that the draft law was adapted from the repressive Printers and Publishers Registration Act enacted after the 1962 military coup.

Although Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index 2011 ranked Burma a slightly better position (169th) than in 2010 (174th) as a result of political reforms including partial amnesties and a reduction in prior censorship, the country remains largely under the control of an authoritarian government run by former members of the military junta assuming new positions as civilian politicians. A number of journalists still remain in prison as of the start of 2012.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/burmas-new-media-law-may-fail-to-ensure-press-freedom

8. Caution Advised Over Fiji’s New Decree

The new state proceedings decree, signed off by Fiji's President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau on January 19, grants full exemption from defamation claims for any private or public statements made by the regime’s leader and his ministers. The decree, in effect, attempts to extend the notion of parliamentary privilege to all statements made by members of parliament.

The regime issued a statement the same week, claiming the decree will strengthen public discussion and consultation in the lead-up to planned national elections in 2014. The new decree follows the recent announcement by Commodore Frank Bainimarama during his New Year’s address to the nation that the existing media regulations, in place since April 2009, would be removed to allow preparations for the drafting of a new national constitution.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/caution-advised-over-fijis-new-decree

9. Journalists Charged with Criminal Defamation in Mongolia

IFJ has condemned the laying of criminal defamation charges against Mongolia’s TV9 television station and its investigative news team, in response to the airing of a documentary disclosing allegations of corruption against government officials.

On December 17, 2011, TV9 broadcast a story concerning the alleged illegal privatisation of a publicly owned building located in the center of the country’s capital, Ulaan Bataar. The documentary linked the sale to corrupt activities of high ranked government officials and urged police to investigate. Shortly afterwards, on December 22, P.Otgonjargal, police major of the State Investigation Authority investigating the privatisation, filed a criminal defamation claim against TV9 and its news team at the Sukhbaatar District Police Department in Ulaan Bataar.

TV9’s documentary team including senior producer D.Turmunkh, reporter N.Binderya, director N.Bayarsaikhan and presenter L.Erdenebaatar were questioned by police. The station’s director, Ts.Enkbat, was also questioned. It is reported that police implied the possible forced detention of the team during the questioning. In December 2010, another Mongolian journalist, Bolormaa Damdinsuren, was charged with criminal defamation after publishing a news report implicating a well-known Mongolian businessman in criminal activity.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/journalists-charged-with-criminal-defamation-in-mongolia

10. Hong Kong’s Fire Services Department Urged to Review Media Policy

The Fire Services Department of Hong Kong has refused to introduce the real-time release of information to the media. IFJ affiliate the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) met with the Fire Services Department on February 20 to express their concerns about the Department’s adequate release of information to the media since the Department’s systems changed from analogue to digital on February 20.

In Hong Kong, the Fire Services Department is responsible for fighting fires, conducting land and sea rescues and providing emergency ambulance services. According to statistics provided by the HKJA, the Department released information on an average of 212 cases per day between February 14 and 15, 2012. This is thought to represent only 10 per cent of the average number of cases received by the media per day in the previous year. HKJA also discovered examples where the Department delayed releasing information about ongoing risks to the public, including a case where the murder of a security guard went unreported for a significant period of time. During the meeting with the HKJA, the Fire Services Department not only refused the HKJA’s request to release information in real-time, but also revealed that the Department only releases information on calls requesting ambulances where the incident involves eight people or more.

The IFJ and HKJA have also previously criticised the Hong Kong Hospital Authority and Police for their failure to promptly release information.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/ifj-urges-hong-kongs-fire-services-department-to-review-media-policy

11. Shocking Murder of Journalist and Family in India

Senior journalist Chandrika Rai, and his wife and two young children, were brutally murdered in Umaria district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Chandrika Rai, 43, a freelance journalist who was published frequently in newspapers in the state capital of Bhopal, was found dead at his home on the evening of Saturday, February 18. His 39-year old wife, 19-year old son and 17-year old daughter, were also found dead in different rooms of the house. All four bodies bore injuries inflicted by a sharp weapon.

Media reports from India suggest that Rai could have been targeted for revenge by elements involved in local coal mining activities. Rai had recently written articles exposing numerous illegalities in the coal trade in the region. Other reports hint at a connection with the recent abduction of the son of a government official. Rai is believed to have expressed his scepticism over police claims that the boy was rescued without any ransom changing hands. This may have attracted the anger of an organised kidnapping racket in the area.

See: http://asiapacific.ifj.org/en/articles/shocking-murder-of-journalist-and-family-in-india

ENDS

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