Medienhilfe Ex-Jugoslawien

To:

• His Excellency Slobodan Milosevic, President of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Fax: + 381 11 311 16 18
• Mr Dojcilo Radojevic, Yugoslav Minister of Transport and Telecommunications. Fax: + 381 11 324 44 14

• Mr Goran Matic, Yugoslav Secretary for Information. Fax: + 381 11 600 446

Zurich, May 25, 1998

 Your Excellency,

Medienhilfe Ex-Jugoslawien is writing to strongly protest against the decisions of the Federal Ministry of Telecommunications regarding the Open Bid for radio frequencies and TV channels. Instead of "introducing law regulation" into the field of electronic media - as the purpose of the Bid was officially explained - the federal authorities used the Bid as one occasion more to perform a serial of blatant crackdowns on independent electronic media. The Bid was carried out on the basis of imprecisely formulated criteria and requirements. The main reason for that is certainly a lack of a systematic law regulation in the electronic media field, as well as the existence of many contradictions in respective laws on the federal and republic levels. The fact that the Ministry of Telecommunications immediately after the announcement of the Bid did not publish an official, clear, detailed and precise specification of documentation which was required for participation in the Bid in a fact created a space for a large misuse of its inferences.

As the consequence, 178 independent radio and TV stations were not granted frequencies and channels. The frequencies were mostly granted to stations whose programme orientation and editorial policy is either supportive to the ruling political party coalition or to those who broadcast only entertainment and commercials. In spite of the fact that all ANEM affiliates submitted identically completed applications, only three of them were granted frequencies - Radio B92, RTV Pancevo and F Kanal from Zajecar. All other ANEM affiliates who participated in the Bid were not granted frequencies. Radio B92 alone submitted four applications: two for radio frequencies, one for TV channel, and one for satellite uplink. However, it was given only one radio frequency. How is it possible to make opposite decisions regarding the equally completed documentation when laws and principles should apply the same for all? At least it is so when the basic democratic principles are respected and practised.

Further, the decision on the fees for the temporary use of radio frequencies and TV channels, which is a part of the Bid, was passed on April 7, 1998, but published in the Official Gazette of FR Yugoslavia only more than a moth’s time afterwards. As the Bid was public, we see this as a serious violation of a democratic procedure. In addition to this, the decision introduces the fees for radio and TV stations who got the frequencies for temporary use, whereas the stations that hold permanent or ten-year right to use their frequencies are not required to pay any fee. This violates the principle of equal standing of all, and is therefore in a contradiction to the Constitution of the FR Yugoslavia. Finally, the monthly amounts of the fees are extremely high so that many stations will not be able to pay them, and actually are forced to refuse the granted frequencies.

The latest information further prove that the Ministry continues with the decisions that bring new details on the list of the Bid’s irregularities. Accordingly, in the individual answers to ANEM members about the reasons why they were not allocated frequencies and channels, for the first time documentation on construction of transmitters and antenna systems is mentioned as necessary. We remind You that ANEM addressed to the Ministry asking for clarification of the requirements before its members submitted applications, and that it was told that such documentation would not be required. Thus, the Ministry either gave the deliberate misinformation, or it is bring one more in a line of its discriminatory decisions that put the participants in the Bid in an unequal position.

As a non-governmental organisation devoted to protection of freedom of media and support to independent media in former Yugoslavia area, Medienhilfe Ex-Jugoslawien condemns these decisions made by Yugoslav authorities. The distribution of the frequencies according to political criteria and by misuse of the legislature and violation of the constitution represents an openly undemocratic act aimed to stifle the independent electronic media. The same applies to the decree on exorbitant fees. The decision to prevent from the frequencies almost all independent electronic media, especially those whose news broadcast does not suit the authorities, represents one of the grossest violation of the freedom of press in Europe ever.

We urge Your Excellency to make sure that the federal state bodies in charge reconsider the decision on the frequencies’ allocation and grant them to all radio and TV stations that met Bid’s requirements. We call for immediate termination of bringing new illegal and discriminatory requirements in individual answers to the stations that were not granted frequencies. We also call for abolishing of introduced fees, or their reduce to a reasonable level that would correspond to stations’ economic power. If for whatever reason this could not be accomplished, we expect that the Open Bid is annulled and a new one, which would fulfil democratic criteria, is organised, while all the stations would be allowed to freely broadcast in a meanwhile.

On behalf of Medienhilfe Ex-Jugoslawien,

Roland Brunner

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Medienhilfe Ex-Jugoslawien; Address: Postfach, 8031 Zürich, Switzerland;
Tel: +41 1 272 46 37; Fax +41 1 272 46 82

E-mail: info@medienhilfe.ch ; Home page: http://www.medienhilfe.ch

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P.O. Box, CH-8031 Zürich, Switzerland
Phone +41-1-272 46 37,  Fax +41-1-272 46 82, email: info@MEDIENHILFE.ch