AFGHANISTAN: TV channel rejects government allegations of improper broadcasting

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

KABUL, 23 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - A private Afghan television channel on Monday rejected government allegations that it had broadcast non-Islamic material after being fined US $1,000 by the Ministry of Information and Culture (MoIC) for showing clips from Bollywood films.

"We are extremely concerned about the recent decision made by the government which failed to provide prior clarification. The decision contradicts the current media rules and policies," Haji Mohammad Rawish, administrative officer for the Afghan TV channel, its official name, told IRIN, adding the decision had been made in the absence of their representatives.

"There was no representative from Afghan TV while the media monitoring commission was taking such a critical decision,” Rawish noted.

While the constitution of post-conflict Afghanistan grants freedom of expression, the media is still very much under considerable pressure in different parts of the country, activists say - a fact many believe impedes the country's political and economic development.

"The media has made significant progress over the past four years. Such a decision by the government should not threaten ongoing media activities in the country," said Humayoon Daneshyar, a local journalist who works for the private radio channel Arman in the capital.

But that could prove a challenge in Afghanistan, a deeply conservative country that strongly values the strong role Islam plays in contemporary Afghan society. Under a revised March 2004 media law signed by Afghan President Hamid Karzai, content deemed insulting to Islam was banned. However, penalties for contravening the law were left vaguely worded - leaving open the possibility of punishment in accordance with Sharia law.

Under the hardline Taliban regime there were few newspapers in Afghanistan, all of which were strictly controlled by the state. The only radio station was Radio Sharia, which broadcast mostly religious programmes. Television was banned.

But four years after the Taliban's fall, all that has changed. Around 300 publications are now registered with the MoIC. There are also 42 radio stations and five private television stations across the Central Asian state.

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