PressEthic

The lack of press freedoms in Nepal since it declared a state of emergency in February 2005 have muzzled the country's journalists and therefore thwarted the democratic process. Now this temporary censure on news broadcasts has become a potentially permanent ordinance that imposes heavy restrictions on independent media. According to the BBC last Friday, Nepal's Supreme Court has refused to prevent the ordinance from becoming law, and while it is not a final verdict, the ruling allows the government to impose it.

This ordinance has affected FM radio stations, in particular, Kantipur FM, Nepal's first independent station.

The government claims that the amendment is not stifling the media but rather imposing a few restrictions needed to stamp out the Maoist insurgency. However, news oriented programs now need to be changed to strictly "information oriented" programs (i.e. sports, health, weather, entertainment). The ordinance also puts the media in a situation where it can't criticize the government or discuss politics. In a country where millions of its citizens are illiterate and poor, FM broadcasts are the sole medium to access of information. Government controlled broadcasts exist, but they are raw transmissions of repetitive speeches given by state officials. To a family of farmers in a remote village outside the country's capital of Kathmandu, where else can they get an analysis of the information (or propaganda) that their state offers them? People have a thirst for answers to their questions, and when not readily available to them, they will get the "facts" from wherever they can, even if it means getting information from the Maoists. In fact, by banning news shows, the King refutes what he is ultimately trying to accomplish.