New York, July 19, 2002—After delaying its decision for nearly
four years, the Tajik government last week refused a broadcast license
to the independent media agency Asia Plus.
Asia Plus applied in August 1998 to open a radio station in the Tajik
capital, Dushanbe, where only state-run television and radio stations
operate. The agency received a brief reply from the State Committee
for Television and Radio on July 8, 2002, stating that a second radio
station in Dushanbe was "unnecessary."
Asia Plus director Umed Babakhanov told the Committee to Protect Journalists
(CPJ) that he believes there are two reasons for the committee's decision.
"The first is that the state doesn't want competition in this market
and wishes to maintain its monopoly. The second reason is that some
top officials fear the appearance of an independent station that is
outside their control."
Lawyers from the nonprofit media-training agency Internews Tajikistan
plan to assist Asia Plus in challenging the committee's ruling. "Asia
Plus has a good reputation for quality programming and for highlighting
stories that affect the people of Tajikistan," said Roshan Khadivi,
the country director for Internews. "There's a political angle to
this case, as well as a commercial one," she added.
In a May 8 letter to Tajik foreign minister Talbak Nazarov, CPJ deplored
the lack of plurality in television and radio outlets in Tajikistan.
Government officials routinely deny independent television and radio
stations broadcast licenses, and although 15 independent television
stations operate in the republic, most are located in the north, far
from large population areas and with very limited audiences. There
is only one independent radio station in Tajikistan, and it, too,
has only local reach.
"We are very concerned that, after an unreasonable delay, the authorities
have denied a license to Asia Plus," said CPJ executive director Ann
Cooper. "We call on the State Committee for Television and Radio to
speed up its procedure for awarding licenses, and to reconsider its
refusal of a license to Asia Plus."
