Ethiopia: New Media Policy Said Key to Democratization
ADDIS ABABA- The Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority (EBA) said that the new Media Policy, the first-ever in its kind in Ethiopia’s long history, would play instrumental role in ensuring freedom of expression and enabling the country’s media transform to democratic institutions.
Speaking to The Ethiopian Herald, EBA Director General Getachew Dinku (PhD) stated that meticulous efforts have been made to enable the policy create a media that will act as a neutral and objective platform for the free debate of all points of view.
Also, effective regulation mechanisms are taking in to effect to constantly follows government’s performance in keeping the right of freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution and the new media policy.
The director-general noted that careful steps are taken place in the formulation of the new policy in a view to creating a vibrant media that serve as a market places of ideas for people from contrasting ideological and interest groups.
“Despite the efforts of some interest groups to impose their hidden agendas under the name of journalism, the Ethiopian government has demonstrated improvement in respecting the diversity of thoughts as long as ethical journalism is exercised,”
Ethiopia’s democracy is based on accepting and acknowledging ethnic, religious and ideological differences and this is manifested in the policy which all actors in the sector should uphold, Getachew stressed.
According to him, the agency has attached utmost attention to protect the mass media from sheer interests and to create healthy and ethical journalistic practices. To this end, the policy has given extensive coverage for the creation of professional, independent and pluralistic media where journalists’ safety is a priority.
The director-general highlighted that the policy would also create a favorable condition to both public and private media to execute their task of creating informed citizens who will demonstrate active political participation.
“As informed citizens will feel compel to participate politically, public’s involvement in the forthcoming General Elections would be enhanced greatly due to media’s active engagement in voter’s education and this is what the new media policy envisions to.”
Getachew said that the policy also aimed furthering media’s involvement in educating voters how to exercise their democratic rights and aware the latter about the political agendas of all participating parties and candidates thereby making knowledgeable choices.
By the same token, the media crucial for political parties and candidates to communicate their policy alternatives to the electorate whilst they pave the way for the public transfer their concerns, opinions and needs to the former.
Issues including how candidates and parties use the mass media for campaigning purpose and the manner of conducting televised debates, use of newspaper columns and other state resources are also covered by the new media policy, the director-general remarked.
by Ethiopian Herald.
