BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
DECEMBER 13, 2008
Kenyans are eagerly waiting to see whether President Mwai Kibaki will assent to the Kenya Communication (Amendment) Bill 2008, hurriedly passed by Members of Parliament on Wednesday.
Kenyans are against the bill because if it is passed it will give the Government draconian powers to seize a broadcasting station’s equipment and to dictate programming content for radio and television.
Media houses have already kindly pleaded with President Kibaki not to assent the Bill, which they say if it is made into law it may come to haunt this country for many years to come.
Don’t forget that these are the same MPs who in April 2006 horrified the world when they threatened to throw out that year’s budget if their mileage allowances were not increased despite the fact that at that time the country direly in search of money to feed millions who were facing starvation.
This time they passed the Bill not only because the media dared to criticise them for refusing to pay taxes but also to ensure the media can never again tell the people about their impunity and irresponsible looting.
Otherwise they would have done the way they did in March 2006 when thousands of them took to the streets in Nairobi to call for the government’s ouster over an unprecedented police raid on Standard and KTN TV houses.
Unlike that time when opposition politician Raila Odinga joined journalists in condemning the raid this time because he has joined the government he has remained tight-lipped as he spoke during the Jamhuri celebrations at Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi on Friday.
Not even President Mwai Kibaki and his VP Kalonzo Musyoka spoke about the controversial Kenya Communications (amendment) Bill 2008 as Walter Mong’are alias Nyambane and Carolyn Mutoko of Kiss FM among other journalists and human right activists were arrested as they watched.
The civil society and journalists were whisked simply because they donned in black T-shirts printed the words; “No tax for MPs No tax for Us, Uta do?” They were also protesting against the Media Bill. They bundled into a police vehicle and driven to Lang’ata police station where they were detained.
Joining the brandishing banners of about 2,000 protesters in condemning the Standard and KTN raids, the MPs demanded the resignation of President Mwai Kibaki and Internal Security Minister John Michuki, who had defended the raid saying it was a matter of state security.
The raid took place shortly the Standard had on its headline a story written about a secret meeting between Kibaki and Kalonzo Musyoka. Kalonzo is currently the Vice President of Kibaki. Weekend edition’s managing director, Chaacha Mwita, sub-editor Dennis Onyango, and reporter Ayub Savula were detained by police for questioning about the story.
The paper’s chief executive officer, Tom Mshindi was later relieved of his duties and currently is the chief executive officer of Uganda Daily Monitor, a sister to Daily Nation of Kenya and Citizen of Tanzania respectively.
Although Musyoka was one of several cabinet ministers fired from their positions after they campaigned against Kibaki’s controversial draft constitution, which was defeated in a referendum in November 2005, The Standard reported that “the former minister was said to have expressed a readiness to rejoin the government and take the vice president’s slot of which he is now.
Kalonzo and the government issued denials after the story was published, and government spokesman Alfred Mutua followed up with a statement calling for the reporters and editor to be punished, the Standard reported.
This incident takes us back during Moi when police officers stormed the Nairobi offices of Citizen FM and Citizen TV, destroying and vandalizing property, including broadcasting equipment.
S.K. Macharia, the proprietor of Royal Media Services (RMS), which owns both stations, was arrested and charged with establishing and using radio communication equipment in violation of his broadcast license and the Kenya Communications Act of 1998.
Citizen FM’s license permitted the station to erect television and radio transmitters in Limuru, on the outskirts of Nairobi.
Macharia was taken to the Criminal Investigation Department for interrogation and then taken to court, where he was charged with using a radio communication apparatus that violated his license. He was released on bond of Kenyan shillings 500,000.
This was about the time then Minister for Trade and Industry Nicholas Biwott, a top aide to President Daniel arap Moi, won a court injunction blocking The Daily Nation from publishing excerpts of Rogue Ambassador, the memoirs of former U.S. ambassador to Kenya Smith Hempstone.
In the book, Hempstone alleges that President Daniel arap Moi personally ordered the murder of then-foreign minister Robert Ouko, beat him, and then watched as Biwott shot Ouko. On July 30, Moi and Biwott sued Hempstone for libel and sought to stop the publication, distribution, and sale of the book or any material that refers to the Ouko murder allegations.
Initially, Moi had threatened The Daily Nation following a full-page advertisement in the August 20 edition of the paper that read in part: “President Moi and Minister Nicholas Biwott want the High Court to stop its sale.
Biwott’s lawyers won the injunction, and, although the paper had already published some brief quotes from the book in which Hempstone calls Moi “ruthless, short-tempered, arrogant and self-promoting,” the editors said they would comply with the ruling.
On September 4, 2001, a high court in Nairobi extended an interim injunction restraining Text Book Centre from further distributing the book. Commissioner of Assize Jeanne Gacheche also blocked the bookseller’s agents and servants from further circulating or selling copies of the book. The court also extended an order barring the Nation Media Group from publishing parts of the book in The Daily Nation.
Similar incident happened recently when the High Court dismissed a defamation suit filed by an assistant minister against Nation Media Group on a story it carried in relation to a swoop on prostitutes in Nairobi’s Koinange Street in 2003. The court ruled that the story did not refer to assistant minister Mwangi Kiunjuri.
After finding the Nation not liable, the judge ordered Mr Kiunjuri to pay costs of the suit to the media house the costs and interest at a rate to be determined by the court from the day the case was filed in 2003.
According to Justice Ojwang the Nation article did not mention Mr Kiunjuri’s name and, in the absence of direct reference, neither the Nation nor its editors could be said to have defamed him. Such rule could hardly be made during Moi.
According to the judge the article was done in the public interest as it covered issues pertaining to HIV/Aids and could not be said to have been meant to make profit.
The judge at the same time found Royal Media guilty of defaming Mr Kiunjuri and awarded him Sh5 million for compensation.
Royal Media, the judge ruled, did not conduct proper investigations before carrying the story and naming the assistant minister as one of the politicians arrested during the swoop.
One thing is very obvious that media in Kenya have really suffered a great deal. It also suffered humiliation when President Mwai Kibaki’s wife, Lucy stormed into the offices of The Daily Nation in protest at the paper’s portrayal of her and her family.
The raid and her security detail, on the Daily Nation offices came as a shock to many.
Her aggressive disposition in slapping Kenya Television Network cameraman Clifford Derrick, who was recording her, was indeed shameful and shocking.
If assented by the president the Bill will not only give the commission powers to license and regulate broadcasting services, which could affect the freedom of radio and television stations and other electronic media outlets, but also gives power to the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) to prescribe to broadcasters what time, type and mode of programmes to air.
The new Bill will also restrict a media organisation from owning a television station and a radio station at the same time. It also prohibits newspaper publishers from owning a broadcasting station. Currently, a number of media organisations own both electronic and print media outlets.
Mars Group Chief Executive Officer, Mwalimu Mati who was also arrested and still behind bars with his wife at Langata Police Station as we go on press said they were arrested for wearing t-shirts that read ‘No taxes for MP’s, No taxes for us’. The police said they were arrested because wearing such t-shirt was bad.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
E-Mail ppa@africaonline.co.ke
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website : www.peopleforpeaceinafrica.org
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Date: Sat, 13 Dec 2008 10:22:12 +0300 [12/13/2008 01:22:12 AM CST]
forwarded by: PEOPLE FOR PEACE IN AFRICA
Subject: WE WAIT TO SEE WHETHER PRESIDENT KIBAKI WILL ASSENT TO MEDIA BILL