The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to you concerning the closure of the Mast FM 103 radio station in Balakot, North West Frontier Province, in response to your letter of 6 November 2006 (Ref. No. F-10-4[109] Gen-2006) informing us that “the matter is closed”. We beg to differ.
You will recall that the radio station obtained a temporary licence to operate from Balakot after an earthquake struck the region in October 2005. The station operated on a non-commercial basis with the intention to assist in the recovery of the region. However, in August 2006 the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PERMA) declined to renew the licence. Your authority extended the temporary licences of other radio stations operating in Balakot; however, Mast FM was refused, without any reason being given.
In our letter of September 27 and a further letter of October 9, we raised serious issues about the closure of the station. In particular, we pointed out that there is reason to believe that the refusal to issue a licence was due to the station reporting on alleged misuse of funds and corruption in rehabilitation programmes carried out by the government agencies, especially the Earthquake Relief and Rehabilitation Authority. We also noted that Mast FM had previously been targeted by your authority, in two raids conducted on its offices in Lahore and Karachi in 2004.
On November 2 our staff person was contacted by Dr. Abdul Jabbar, the then Director General (Tech) of the PEMRA, who insisted that this is “not a human rights matter” but purely a domestic matter under his office’s authority. Furthermore, he refused to give any clear explanation for the closure of the station.
We therefore see no reason that the matter should be “closed”, as stipulated in your letter of November 2, because none of the serious issues we raised previously have yet been clarified. Nor has the licence of the radio station been restored or an investigation been conducted into the persons responsible for its refusal.
As to whether or not this is a human rights matter, may we remind you of article 19(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, that, “Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice.” This right shall be restricted only where provided by law for the purpose of respecting the rights and reputations of others or protecting national security. So far we see nothing to indicate that the closure of this radio station would fall into the latter categories.
Perhaps it is not surprising to find that the PEMRA is ignorant of this article 19, given that the Government of Pakistan has not yet joined the Covenant. However, article 19 of the constitution of your country also holds that, “Every citizen shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression… subject to any reasonable restrictions imposed by law in the interest of the glory of Islam or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan or any part thereof, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, [commission of] or incitement to an offence.” Again, there is nothing in this to explain the failure of your agency to renew the licence to Mast FM.
Your role is not purely administrative. Broadcast media is a matter of national interest. Please understand that the arbitrary delimiting of free expression is something with which millions throughout Asia are greatly concerned, and directly affected. It is for this reason that the Asian Human Rights Commission has taken a special interest in this case, and will continue to do so until in our opinion, not yours, “the matter is closed”.
We again recommend that you take the following steps: first, review the decision to not renew the licence to Mast FM in Balakot; second, conduct an investigation to determine the reasons for the arbitrary closure of the station; third, put in place adequate safeguards to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.
Yours sincerely
Basil Fernando
Executive Director
Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong
