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FM
Former Member

Guyana Times

says it is receiving threats from Gov’t agents for publishing critical news

 

The management of the Guyana Times newspaper, in a released statement, has outlined that persons who claimed to be agents of the Government have been calling and threatening the publication, that it will face “dire consequences” should it continue to publish news items that are critical of the incumbent Administration.

“As an independent media house, Guyana Times has striven to express the views of all Guyanese irrespective of religion, race, creed, or political background. This media house, over the past 10 years, has stood firm as a watchdog of our democracy and against Government excesses” the statement said.

Moreover, the popular publication cited Article 19 of the United Nations Declaration which speaks to the protection of Press Freedom and emphasised the part of the Declaration which says that “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

The media publication says it views the reported threats as “being aimed at silencing us as a media house from performing our role as the fourth estate of democratic government.”

To that end however, Guyana Times says it “will not be intimidated by these threats and will continue to report and cover the news fairly and fearlessly as it unfolds.”

See their full statement below:

Guyana Times has received a number of threats from persons, who claimed to be agents of the Government to stop publishing news items, which are critical of the Administration.

These persons have threatened that should this newspaper continue to pursue articles which are critical of the Government, its owners, management and affiliate companies will face dire consequences.

As an independent media house, Guyana Times has striven to express the views of all Guyanese irrespective of religion, race, creed, or political background. This media house, over the past 10 years, has stood firm as a watchdog of our democracy and against Government excesses.

Guyana Times, along with its sister companies Television Guyana (TVG-CH 28) and Radio Guyana Inc (RGI), is housed at the Sanata Complex, Ruimveldt Industrial Site, Georgetown.

We are of the view that this threat is aimed at silencing us as a media house from performing our role as the fourth estate of democratic government.

Freedom of the press is protected by Article 19 of the United Nations Declaration. This article is explicit in its protection of freedoms and more significantly, points to: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

In the past, this media house has been threatened by Government officials. In particular one Government official called for the torching of Sanata Complex, which houses among other entities, Guyana Times newspaper, Television Guyana (TVG-CH 28) and Radio Guyana Inc (RGI).

Guyana Times assures our readers and public that we will not be intimidated by these threats and will continue to report and cover the news fairly and fearlessly as it unfolds.

Guyanatimes

 

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And the threat follows after this ...

Granger’s concerns about “sections of the media” raise red flags

 

PNC Leader, President David Granger delivering the feature address to Genera Council on Saturday, May 19, 2018.

David Granger, Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR)- the biggest party in the governing coalition- has raised concerns about sections of the media, triggering a warning of a government crackdown on media that report critically of the now three-year old administration.

The Editors-in-Chief of the privately-owned Stabroek News and Kaieteur News newspapers have also expressed some concern about President David Granger’s remarks concerning the impact of the media on the coalition.

Anand Persaud of the Stabroek News called on the President to clarify his concerns about the media so that they could be properly addressed especially in the context of the sedition clause in the Cyber Crime Bill that raised worry about “any attempt to cut down free speech”. “There should be a clear explanation from the President of what he believes are the challenges so that those could be answered by the media houses that he citing because we would like to know clearly what are those things that he finds challenging because those he finds challenges could actually be things that the media have a legitimate right to investigate and expose and to detect,” Persaud told Demerara Waves Online News.

The Kaieteur News’ Adam Harris said it would be “rather unfortunate” for the President if he does not believe that any government is subjected to media scrutiny. Defending his paper’s stance on the ExxonMobil  2016 agreement, Harris said it’s comments and reportage on that deal as well as allegations of kick-backs from out-of-court multi-million dollar settlements. “No government will ever get a clear walk-through. It’s always subject to scrutiny…and that’s expected in any part of the world,” Harris said.

Political Science Professor, David Hinds acknowledged that sections of the media have not been friendly to the media in recent times, but he said government could not journalism practitioners to ignore unnecessary mistakes being made. “Unfortunately, the government has made some basic errors of judgement that any responsible media must report and critique,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.

He recommended that government overhaul its media strategy to get better coverage for some of the good things that it has been doing. “Unfortunately for government, routine government actions do not amount to news. The government has to package those as big policy to catch the attention of the media,” he said.

Hinds, who is also an executive member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) which is part of the Granger-led coalition administration, suggested that he would not be surprised that signs of growing concern about media reports could result in an assault on the press as had been the case by the PNC administration during its rule in the 1970s to 1980s and the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) from the 1990s to 2015.

“My fear is that this narrative of a hostile media could lead the government to crackdown on the media. We have been down that road before under the PNC and PPP governments. And elements in this government have already shown intolerance for criticism. So, I would urge the calmer minds to try to stem the tide of alienation,” said Hinds who, along with trade unionist Lincoln Lewis, was removed as a columnist from the government-controlled Guyana Chronicle newspaper.

For the Stabroek News, that newspaper prefers to take the Guyanese leader’s concerns at face value today because President Granger did not have much to do with the PNC in that period. “I’d like to take that on face-value and to hear clearly from this new PNC what exactly their concerns are because, of course, going back to their previous period in government, they were a whole range of different concerns. I would like to hear from this President as to media criticisms and how open they are and so that line in the PNC release- I am not sure it was well thought out and really they needed to have some explication of it,” Persaud said.

Harris, who worked with the PNC’s newspaper- New Nation- and the government-controlled Guyana Chronicle, disagreed that a crackdown on sections of the media was likely. “I am not worried about that. As a matter of fact, I don’t think it is in Granger to silence the media, himself being a journalist. What I think you will find is the normal grumbling…Every single government has been reacting to the media because they put them under scrutiny,” said Harris.

The Political Scientist’s reaction came against the background of PNC Leader Granger, who is also Guyana’s President, raising concerns at his party’s General Council last weekend about unnamed sections of the media. “Mr. Granger also spoke of the many achievements of the Government. He also highlighted the daily challenges faced by the Coalition from some sections of the media,” the PNC said in a statement after the meeting by the Council, the second highest decision-making forum by that party. PNC Chairman, Basil Williams, according to that party statement, also raised concerns about information he said was being peddled by the opposition. “Mr. Williams said that party members must be prepared to put up with the resistance and seek information that will equip them to rebut the lies and fabrications of the opposition. The Chairman said that the task of members is to stand up and defend the Party, the Government and the Coalition,” the PNC said.

Hinds countered, saying that those media outfits that have raised Granger’s concerns were not always hostile to the government, but had played a major role in sensitizing the society to the ills of the previous government that in the long run benefitted the coalition. At least two of the media houses that are now unfriendly to the government, were actually openly supportive of parties within the Coalition,” he said.

The President and his government, he said, should ask why some of the media have become very cozy with anti-government forces. Hinds said government should share some of the blame for the type of media coverage it has been receiving instead of seeing itself as the victim. “I think the government, by its aloofness, the arrogance of some ministers, bad decisions, and its handling of the sate-owned media, has alienated sections of both groups. So, I don’t think the government is a victim as the president’s remarks seem to suggest,” he said.

Noting that the President has been very supportive of journalists, Hinds said the media is an oversight institution which has a 24-hour presence, Hinds advised that “any sensible government would not want to alienate the
media”. He further advised that a government crackdown on privately-owned media would not help the administration because most Guyanese get their news from such outfits instead of the government-funded and controlled radio, television and newspapers. “Government supporters don’t get their news and opinions from the state-owned media. So, they need the independent media to reach their own supporters. Ultimately news outlets gather and sell news and opinions. If the government constantly makes mistakes, they will report those and spin them as part of an editorial policy. If the government does transformative things, I am sure the media would sell that,” he said.

The PNC rule from 1964 to 1992 had been characterised by government control of the media through no liberalisation of the radio broadcasting spectrum, restrictions on the importation of newsprint for newspapers that had been critical of the government and the murder of Catholic Standard photographer, Father Bernard Darke.

After Forbes Burnham died, his successor, Desmond Hoyte, paved the way for the establishment of the independent Stabroek News newspaper with some American funding.

The absence of private radio had continued into the PPP-led administration until 2011 when then President Bharrat Jagdeo granted several radio licences to persons he had perceived to have favoured. During the Jagdeo-led administration, the privately-owned CNS-TV Channel 6 had been close twice, and HBTV Channel Nine once.

Jagdeo had also banned then Capitol News journalist, Gordon Moseley from State House and the Office of the President because of a report on the then Guyanese leader’s meeting with Guyanese in Antigua. Jagdeo had also repeated called independent journalists “opposition media”, “carrion crows” and “vultures”. His administration had also banned government advertisements in the privately-owned Stabroek News newspapers, and had lifted the ban only after the start-up of the Guyana Times newspaper whose principals include his friend, Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop.

FM

This topic followed by two questions that no one cares to address. They started to attack the PNC without impunity. What kinda scatter-foot people we're dealing with here? Nehru seems to be the leader again. Lol

FM
Django posted:
VishMahabir posted:

Does anyone read theGuyana Times out here???

Sometime i take a peek to see how they brainwashed their readers,the same goes for the Guyana Chronicle.

How can you prove GTimes is brain washing it’s readers. Do you think everyone is dumb like you. 

Guyanese in the home land have first hand experience unlike you who depend on the same media and “ them say she say” for your source of information.

FM
Dave posted:
Django posted:
VishMahabir posted:

Does anyone read theGuyana Times out here???

Sometime i take a peek to see how they brainwashed their readers,the same goes for the Guyana Chronicle.

How can you prove GTimes is brain washing it’s readers. Do you think everyone is dumb like you. 

Guyanese in the home land have first hand experience unlike you who depend on the same media and “ them say she say” for your source of information.

The highlighted shows clearly your intellectual level,typical behavior of infantile and PPP-ites.

The Guyana Times is at the lowest rung of the ladder feeding cool-aid to it 's readers.There is another one called Citizens Report,a grain of salt needed when reading the two medias.

Django
Django posted:
Dave posted:
Django posted:
VishMahabir posted:

Does anyone read theGuyana Times out here???

Sometime i take a peek to see how they brainwashed their readers,the same goes for the Guyana Chronicle.

How can you prove GTimes is brain washing it’s readers. Do you think everyone is dumb like you. 

Guyanese in the home land have first hand experience unlike you who depend on the same media and “ them say she say” for your source of information.

The highlighted shows clearly your intellectual level,typical behavior of infantile and PPP-ites.

The Guyana Times is at the lowest rung of the ladder feeding cool-aid to it 's readers.There is another one called Citizens Report,a grain of salt needed when reading the two medias.

Django describing someone’s  behaviour and label them to a political party reminds me of Stabroek market fish vendor. Although you try to portray yourself a Blackman , I can see the coolie deep within. 

Any  how banna, was  the article above misleading.

FM
Dave posted:
Django posted:
Dave posted:
Django posted:
VishMahabir posted:

Does anyone read theGuyana Times out here???

Sometime i take a peek to see how they brainwashed their readers,the same goes for the Guyana Chronicle.

How can you prove GTimes is brain washing it’s readers. Do you think everyone is dumb like you. 

Guyanese in the home land have first hand experience unlike you who depend on the same media and “ them say she say” for your source of information.

The highlighted shows clearly your intellectual level,typical behavior of infantile and PPP-ites.

The Guyana Times is at the lowest rung of the ladder feeding cool-aid to it 's readers.There is another one called Citizens Report,a grain of salt needed when reading the two medias.

Django describing someone’s  behaviour and label them to a political party reminds me of Stabroek market fish vendor. Although you try to portray yourself a Blackman , I can see the coolie deep within. 

Any  how banna, was  the article above misleading.

You don't make sense,anyway in Guyana typical when an East Indian have different views from them mattie,they are castigated.

You have to read between the lines,after Granger said some of the medias are critical to the Coalition Gov't.

The Guyana Times few days after said,they were threatened,what they should do is make the recordings of the calls public.Fair game ain't it.

Now don't tell they don't have the technology to record the calls.

Django
Last edited by Django

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