A RED-LETTER DAY FOR BHUTANESE JOURNALISM
Growth thrives on freedom. And freedom is a fundamental human right which should pervade across every aspect of human life if the reigning focus is democratic dynamism. Now the Bhutanese journalists have a leeway to this very necessary right with the Journalists Association of Bhutan (JAB) coming into life with the signing of the charter for Bhutan Media Foundation by His Majesty on Sunday. Freedom of media is constitutionally guaranteed but there have been instances when the media has been under fire or suffered covert violations of rights which go into making the media truly the fourth state. The managing editor of Kuensel, Ugyen Penjore, said that the freedom of expression and media in Bhutan is “fairly good” compared with several other countries. “A lot of people think the Bhutanese media is suppressed,” he said, citing “national security” issues as being perhaps the only area where some discretion is exercised. However, in case of encroachment upon reasonable
media rights, the JAB would be seen as “a collective strength to fight for common good,” said a member of the drafting committee. Talking about the hurdles faced by Bhutanese journalists, an editor said that the biggest challenge as of now was lack of adequate training which led to below par performance. “Untrained journalists do not understand issues and thus cannot fulfill their responsibilities,” he reasoned. Other common challenges faced included owners of media houses trying to control editorial content and even advertisers manipulating by withdrawing advertisements if negative stories were written. “Here again the might of JAB, as a collective force of Bhutanese journalists, can play in negating
the growth of such trends,” said a media person. JAB will take up instances of abuse of journalists and their works in several ways. It can adopt a collective stand, on behalf of an abused reporter; it can advocate publicly against abusive practices; and it can even take the issue up in the court of law. A senior reporter from a weekly newspaper said that “there should be a synergy between the Media Act and the JAB charter
so that inconsistencies can be ruled out in case of violation of journalistic rights”. In order to not only protect journalistic rights but as a further impetus to professional growth, JAB will train journalists and raise funds to do so. The association will also revitalize the existing press-club where, according to the Bhutan Observer editor, Needrup Zangpo, “an informal atmosphere of interaction and knowledge
sharing among the various media people will contribute towards advancement of Bhutanese media”. He said that JAB could organize a press meeting once every month where highly-placed officials, including the ministers, would face the media in an open Q and A session thus ensuring transparent governance apart from bringing “resource people from journalistic circles” to brief novices in the field. But journalists themselves
have certain responsibilities and principles they have to adhere to if the check and balance principle has to work. JAB has drawn the code of ethics and the onus is on the editors to follow it rigidly. If not, JAB would intervene. A reputed editor said that JAB would ensure that committee representatives of JAB in a media house would get together and brief the journalists on the code of ethics especially
in the local context. And what if disputes arise among journalists and media organizations themselves? According to another member of the drafting committee, “a temporary ad-hoc arbitration group will resolve the disputes,” but the committee will comprise objective people who have a “journalistic background.” With the Journalists Association formed under the aegis of Bhutan Media Foundation, the future of journalism in the world’s youngest democracy “looks bright”, said Ugyen Penjore. Needrup Zangpo also feels that the media in Bhutan has gained a sound footing after these promising developments but “a lot of ground work needs to be done” to implement them. A journalist summed up the situation when she THIMPHUthrew the question: “In which country would you get the head of state coming out openly to support the media as His Majesty the King did by signing the charter of Bhutan Media Foundation?”
Source: bhutantoday