Controlling

the airwaves

OVER the years, there has been a sort of censorship musical chairs going on in relation to government controls over political reporting of sensitive subjects by Radio Vanuatu. While government-owned, the national broadcaster is supposed to have edi torial endependence. But as the old saying goes, truth is the first causualty of war. So when political battles hot up in Port Vila, directives start hitting the desks of long-suffering amdinistrators and editorial staff at Radio Vanuatu headquarters, which is perched on a small hill at the edge of town.

Back on July 10, 1991, then prime minister Walter Lini banned Radio Vanuatu broadcasts of statements from a dissident faction of his ruling Vanua’aku Pati. Regional media or ganisations weighed-in on the row with widely circulated statements criticising the action.

During the latest power struggle in Vanuatu, in which prime minister Korman was battling to keep a parliamentary majority, the boot was firmly on the other foot. Lini, having left the government with five sup porters, found himself cut off from access to the airwaves. Korman’s government instructed Radio Vanu atu not to carry statements from Lini or his group or to conduct interviews with them. The Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) reacted by saying it would be sad if Vanuatu had to revert to post media freedom restric tions which had tarnished the country’s reputation.

The leader of Vanuatu’s opposition

Vanua’aku Party, Donald Kalpokas,

told PIM that restrictions on Radio

Vanuatu were aflecting'all opposition

parties, and not just the Lini group. *‘When we issue a statement, we are lucky if a little bit of it gets on the air,”

Kalpokas said. “Anything which is sensitive seems to be cut.” □