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Former Member
AFC cries foul over 'state media' coverage
Written by Demerara Waves Wednesday, 21 September 2011 17:13

The Alliance For Change is crying foul over the recent attention it has attracted from the state and pro-government media houses as the election season deepens.

At its weekly news conference on Wednesday party executive Gerhard Ramsaroop said that that they have noted with “increasing consternation the decline into rabid political partisanship being undertaken by the state and government-supported media.” “Even more sinister however is the trend towards what appears for all intents and purposes to be a centrally directed campaign against the opposition in general – and the Alliance in particular.

On the one hand we find, for example, the Guyana Times/Guyana Chronicle collusion in peddling the myth of a leadership crisis in the Alliance, even as the PPP has failed to select a Prime Ministerial candidate weeks away from a National Elections,” Ramsaroop stated. On the other hand, he said, it sets a dangerous precedent for the peddling of shameless propaganda during the upcoming season. He noted that the government is fond of saying that there is freedom of expression in Guyana and that media operatives here do not face the extremes of some of their colleagues in other countries.

Ramsaroop pointed out that the preamble of the Declaration of Chapultepec, signed by President Jagdeo in May, 2002, states that criminals, terrorists and drug traffickers still threaten, attack and murder journalists but that that is not the only way to harm a free press and free expression. “The temptation to control and regulate has led to decisions that limit the independent action of the media, of journalists and of citizens who wish to seek and disseminate information and opinions,” he quoted from the preamble.

The AFC executive stated that the banning of journalists from press conferences, abuse of the state media towards partisan ends, collaboration with and state support private media entities to publish a partisan line all limit the independence of the media in Guyana. He noted the reestablishment of GECOM’s Media Monitoring Unit and called on the body to issue fortnightly reports assessing the media environment in Guyana in light of the recent trend.

“Outside of the Unit however we would like to take the opportunity to call on the members of the Guyana Press Association to not only remain vigilant against this increased tendency to thwart and undermine the democratic function of the media, but to be vocal in its condemnation whenever such infringements occur,” Ramsaroop concluded.

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Securing Press Freedom
Read by Gerhard Ramsaroop, AFC Executive Member

The Alliance For Change notes with increasing consternation the decline into rabid political partisanship being undertaken by the state and government-supported media. Even more sinister however is the trend towards what appears for all intents and purposes to be a centrally directed campaign against the opposition in general – and the Alliance in particular.

On the one hand we find, for example, the Guyana Times/Guyana Chronicle collusion in peddling the myth of a leadership crisis in the Alliance, even as the PPP has failed to select a Prime Ministerial candidate weeks away from a National Elections. On the other hand however, this sets a precedent a dangerous precedent for the peddling of shameless propaganda during the upcoming season.

A favourite theme of this government is that there is freedom of expression in Guyana and that media operatives here do not face the extremes faced by journalists in other countries. We would like to remind the government of the preamble to the Declaration of Chapultepec, signed by President Jagdeo in May, 2002, which states: “There are still countries whose despotic governments abjure every freedom, particularly those freedoms related to expression. Criminals, terrorists and drug traffickers still threaten, attack and murder journalists. But that is not the only way to harm a free press and free expression. The temptation to control and regulate has led to decisions that limit the independent action of the media, of journalists and of citizens who wish to seek and disseminate information and opinions.”

Banning of journalists from press conferences, abuse of the state media towards partisan ends, collaboration with and state support private media entities to publish a partisan line: all these limit the independence of the media in Guyana. The Media Monitoring Unit of the Guyana Elections Commission was recently reestablished. We at the Alliance For Change recommends that, in light of the present trend, the MMU issue fortnightly reports assessing the media environment in Guyana, encouraging what needs to be encouraged in local electoral journalism, and censuring – without fear or favour – that which needs to be censured.

Outside of the Unit however we would like to take the opportunity to call on the members of the Guyana Press Association to not only remain vigilant against this increased tendency to thwart and undermine the democratic function of the media, but to be vocal in its condemnation whenever such infringements occur.

ress-releases&Itemid=55" target="_blank">Source
FM
quote:

.. even as the PPP has failed to select a Prime Ministerial candidate weeks away from a National Elections,”


It is each political party's sole right on the time to name its Prime Ministerial candidate. Big Grin


FM
AFC calls for assessment of media environment
By STABROEK STAFF | LOCAL | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2011

Concerned by what it has termed the “rabid political partisanship being undertaken by the state and government-supported media,” the AFC yesterday urged that the Guyana Elections Commission Media Monitoring Unit offer reports assessing the media environment in the country. This, the party contended, should be aimed at pushing what needs to be encouraged in local electoral journalism and censuring—without fear or favour—that which needs to be censured.

The AFC pointed to the “banning of journalists from press conferences”, the “abuse of state media towards partisan ends”, “collaboration with state and private media entities to push a partisan line,” to limit the independence of the media in Guyana. The party, in a press statement, described as “sinister” a trend by the state-owned and government-supported media targeted at the opposition in general and specifically against the AFC. “On the one hand we find, for example, the Guyana Times/Guyana Chronicle collusion in peddling the myth of a leadership crisis in the Alliance, even as the PPP has failed to select a prime ministerial candidate weeks away from a national elections,” the party said.

The AFC took offence to an article carried on Sunday by the Guyana Times under the caption “leadership crisis looms in AFC as Trotman returns. The article resulted from Saturday’s announcement that Raphael Trotman would be the AFC’s prime ministerial candidate. “The AFC fails to see the connection between the meeting of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) and WikiLeaks revelations but it is delighted that the PPP has indeed been reading them,” the party stated. “The AFC submits that in functional, normal and workable democracies, the recent WikiLeaks revelations would have been sufficiently damning materials for ministers to resign and for governments to be voted out,” it added. “In no functional democracy would a presidential candidate say that he is slightly amused by them,” the AFC said.

“An important outcome of the WikiLeaks revelations,” the AFC said, is the establishment, “beyond all doubt, that this PPP administration has been linked to the Roger Khan death squad”. Further the AFC said that “the present posturing and attitude of this government pretending as if none of this happened is shameful and can only occur in a society in which issues have not served as the criteria for the election of governments.” The AFC noted that this is a situation where a sitting government has breached with impunity the law of the land.

The AFC challenged NCN, Chronicle and the Guyana Times to publish the names of the other countries which have had both their commissioner of police and the minister of home affairs visas revoked by key nations of the free world.

Source
FM
Chronicle is toilet paper I am quite surprised however that the opposition all of a sudden has woken up and realized they dont have access to state media.

If this is how they intend to run the country they may be no different than the PPP.

Gerald what is going on dere boy?
J

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