“Illegal” move by government to ban live coverage of Taliban attacks

Reporters Without Borders urges the Afghan interior ministry to reverse its decision to ban live media coverage of Taliban attacks on the grounds that the information provided by journalists could be used by the insurgents to coordinate their actions. The press freedom organisation supports the culture ministry’s plan to bring media representatives and security officials together on 6 March to seek a solution to the crisis triggered by the ban. “’We fully understand that the government’s priority is to protect civilians but the public’s right to be informed about ongoing operations is also a priority and we are worried by a measure that could only lead to biased coverage of the conflict,” Reporters Without Borders said. “We regard the interior ministry’s decision as a veiled bid to disguise the realities of the conflict and to conceal events that are not to the advantage of the government and coalition forces,” the press freedom organisation added. The head of the government’s media centre, Hakim Ashir, confirmed on 2 March that the interior minister had decided to ban live media coverage of Taliban attacks. “This kind of coverage endangers journalists and gives the enemy forces an enormous tactical advantage,” he said. Claiming that coverage of military attacks was a matter of state secrecy, the head of the Kabul criminal investigation department, Abdolghafar Seidzadeh, said the ban was decided by the National Security Council. All the media, both national and international, are affected by the ban. Ariana TV news editor Abdul Qadeer Merzai told Reporters Without Borders: “According to Afghan laws, the public has a right to clear, transparent and accurate information. We support all decisions that help to preserve the lives of citizens and journalists, but if the aim is to censor us or to undermine free expression and the laws, we are resolutely opposed.” Tolo TV news editor Mojahed Kaker said to Reporters Without Borders his station had objected to the decision “because it violates the constitution and media law, which guarantee unrestricted access to information.” He added: “Our station does not accept regulations which are illegal and which limit freedom of expression.” The live coverage ban follows a bloody Taliban attack in the centre of Kabul on 27 February in which 17 people were killed, including a French filmmaker. The suicide operation highlighted the government’s weakness and the ability of the insurgents to strike at the heart of the capital. Several journalists who were at the scene of the events were arrested and their equipment was confiscated. This is not the first time the Afghan government has tried to censor journalists covering the war. During the presidential election campaign last August, the foreign and interior ministries asked the media not to refer to the wave of violence throughout the country, even in areas where the government’s control was strongest, “in view of the need to ensure the wide participation of the Afghan people (...) and prevent any election-related terrorist violence.” The interior ministry statement forbad journalists to mention terrorist attacks and instructed them keep away from the scene of any attacks. In June 2006, the National Security Directorate summoned the executives and editors of some ten Afghan news media in order to tell them what they could and could not do. Following the meeting, the NSD sent a list of forbidden subjects to the leading news media. Reporters Without Borders has on several occasions condemned the tendency of the security forces to harass reporters when they try to military operations or clashes with armed groups.