PROBLEM OF INDEPENDENCE OF TV AND RADIO COMPANIES FROM POLITICAL
AUTHORITIES IS NOT SOLVED BY PROPOSED DRAFTS, INTERNEWS REPRESENTATIVE
FINDS

YEREBAN, FEBRUARY 16, NOYAN TAPAN. The drafts on making amendments to
the RA law "On Television and Radio" and on making amendments and
additions to the RA law "On Regulations of Television and Radio
National Committee" were placed in the internet site of the RA Justice
Ministry. They will be soon presented to discussion of the National
Assembly. As Boris Navasardian, the Yerevan Press Club (YPC) Chairman
stated at the February 15 press conference, unlike the drafts presented
to the NA in September of the last year and refused by deputies, by
thos drafts the government attempts to simply solve a technical
problem, that’s, to make principles concerning formation of the
Television and Radio National Committee corresponding to Article 83.2
of the RA Constitution. But the issues relating to the Television and
Radio National Committee status and securing representative variety in
it are not completely solved by those drafts as well as it is defined
how the Television and Radio National Committee will regulate and
control activity of the Public Television and Radio Company. In
B.Navasardian’s words, calls of international structures were also
ignored, particularly, Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe Representative on Freedom of the Media Miklos Haraszti’s
persuation "Staffs of all councils must reflect the political-public
variety of the country and must involve NGOs and professional
associations" expressed in the July 26, 2006 report on the theme "State
of Freedom of Press in Armenia." In the opinion of Davit Sandukhchian,
the Legal Department Chief of the Internews public organization, the
main defect of the drafts proposed by the RA Government is that it does
not solve the problem of independence of TV and radio companies from
the political authorities.