MPs express concerns over communications bill

LERATO MALEKE & GOTHATAONE MOENG
Correspondent & Staff Writer | Thursday July 26, 2012 00:00

 

Debating the bill, Maele said  the seeming withdrawal from the three-tier model of broadcasting concerns him.  The Broadcasting Act of 2008 says an ideal broadcasting model has public, private and community broadcasting while the Bill under consideration only talks about 'state' and 'commercial' broadcasters. Maele said Molefhi's Bill also goes against the African Charter on Broadcasting signed in 2001, which also promotes a three-tier system of broadcasting.

The African Charter was adopted by media practitioners at a 2001 UNESCO Conference held in Windhoek, Namibia, and calls for all state and government controlled broadcasters to be transformed into public service broadcasters. It further presses for public service broadcasters to serve the 'overall public interest, avoiding one-sided reporting and programming in regard to religion, political belief, culture, race and gender.' Maele argued that the regulatory bill is only concerned with the state-owned media and the private media but does not cover community radio stations.Like other MPs who previously debated the bill, Maele said community radio stations are very imperative in the sense that they can bring about interaction among communities, adding that it is high time government considers issuing licences for such entities.

Tati MP Charles Tibone said the time has come for government to see community radio stations as a developmental issue.  He said instead of having MPs going across the country taking issues to the electorate, that role can be played by community radio stations.'I would urge the minister to encourage the establishment of community radio stations,' he said.On Monday, Venson-Moitoi presented the bill before the House, and said the Act will provide for the creation of an independent regulatory authority, the Botswana Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, for the regulation of the communications sector in Botswana, comprising telecommunications, internet and information and communication technologies, radio communications, broadcasting, postal services and related matters; and for matters connected or incidental thereto. For his part, Assistant Minister of Local Government Maxwell Motowane complained that the bill is a duplication of laws. He argued that it also favours government media, particularly radio stations, adding that they enjoy more advertising as compared to private ones. He also urged the minister to be quick on the issue of community radio stations since a lot of Batswana have shown interest in them.Meanwhile, the MP for Ngwaketse West Mephato Reatile raised concern about the coverage of radio stations, arguing that most of them, especially private ones, do not cover some parts of the country. He said the licensing authority should look into their business plans. He cited eBotswana, which he said only broadcasts in Gaborone.  'People in Sebete sa Nkwe should also watch wrestling on etv like those in Gaborone,' he emphasised.

The bill yesterday went for a second reading and the minister said they have noted that the existing Telecommunications Act (CAP 73:03) of 1996, amended in 2004, confines the mandate of the Botswana Telecommunications Authority to the regulation of the telecommunications sector and assumes technical regulation of broadcasting in the old sense that is no longer applicable. Further, she said the convergence of technologies has resulted in the provision of telecommunications and broadcasting on one platform in some instances, thus rendering them inseparable. 'The proliferation of these new services never anticipated in the existing framework, is a concern that is being addressed through the CRA Bill,' she said. Moreover, Venson-Moitoi said the Telecommunications Act and the Broadcasting Act were not designed for this transformation. The bill, she said, thus provides for the repeal of these inadequate pieces of legislation and their provisions transferred to the CRA Bill. Through the CRA Bill, the National Broadcasting Board and the Botswana Telecommunications Authority  are to be merged since some of their functions overlap. Their regulatory oversight functions are to be transferred to the BOCRA, a single structure.

Further, provisions covering regulatory functions from the existing Broadcasting Act (CAP 72:04) of 1998 have been incorporated into the CRA Bill with a dedicated chapter appearing in the body of the bill. As a consequence of the transfer of these provisions to the CRA Bill, the minister said there is need to repeal the Broadcasting Act. The bill adjourned for further consultations on the back of MPs' concerns.