Tough new Press law commences in April

GOTHATAONE MOENG
Staff Writer | Wednesday January 23, 2013 00:00

 

The Act provides for the creation of the Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA), a single regulatory body, which will oversee the communications sector in Botswana. It will also provide for the merging of the National Broadcasting Board (NBB) and the Botswana Telecommunications Authority (BTA) to eliminate duplication.

Before being passed into an Act, the bill caused much controversy both in and outside Parliament, with fears that the law would further entrench government control of government-funded media.

While the Act states that all broadcasters need to be issued valid licences by the BOCRA board, it however exempts state broadcasters, Botswana Television (Btv) and Radio Botswana (RB).

In a press release issued to the media at the time, Phenyo Butale, then National Director of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), Botswana, said non-regulation of state broadcasters is a reversal of progress already made in the licensing of Radio Botswana as a public broadcaster. 

He said then that he was disappointed as the bill came at a time when there was hope of transformation of state media, to address concerns that programming on state broadcasting is biased and does not offer the nation a balanced view on issues. Other issues that raised eyebrows in the bill include a clause that states in relation to electronic communication: The Authority may, during any emergency, require any service provider to give priority to the transmission of the messages of government or of any person and to intercept messages transmitted under such circumstances”.

Critics were wary of the fact that the bill does not define the word “emergency” and that this could leave much room for abuse.

The nation was also perturbed by a clause dealing with improper use of the telecommunications system, which states that any person who sends a message, by means of a public telecommunications system, which is deemed to be offensive or indecent, commits an offence.