Parliament Adopts Amendments to Georgian Broadcasting Law
Parliament adopted on July 3 the draft law on amendments to the Georgian Law on Broadcasting in the third reading with 76 votes in favour.
The draft law increases the number of members of the Board of Public Broadcasting from 9 to 11, and the National Communications Commission of Georgia may submit two candidates to the Parliament. The term of office of the Chairman and Deputy Chairman is extended from three to six years. The draft law changes the qualification requirements for the General Directorate of Public Broadcasting. It requires public broadcasters to allocate at least 10% of the state budget to finance Georgian feature films, documentaries, and TV series and abolishes the Advisory Council of Adjara Television.
On June 30, the Parliament adopted amendments to the same law clarifying the legal definitions of media service, video-sharing platform service, and editorial responsibility in line with European standards. The amendments also regulate the closing of the Georgian National Communications Commission sessions and ensure that the annual report reflects the work done and future plans. Part of the response to hate speech has moved back from the regulatory commission to the self-regulatory bodies of the broadcasters. The bill also deals with appeals to the court in case of violations by media service providers.
The Media Advocacy Coalition Reacts on Amendments
The Media Advocacy Coalition reacted swiftly to the amendments in its today’s statement and strongly condemned the law adopted by “Georgian Dream” which, among other things, aims to abolish the Advisory Council of Adjara Television.
According to the Coalition, the law undermines the principles of independence and freedom of expression of the Public Broadcaster, which are the cornerstones of any democratic society.
The Media Advocacy Coalition states it strongly believes that while polarization and misinformation are challenges, the role of independent public broadcasters in providing unbiased and diverse content to the public is crucial. “The current policies and actions of the ruling team, on the contrary, are aimed at controlling private media and public broadcasters and using them for political purposes” – reads the statement.
In light of the above, the Media Advocacy Coalition calls on the President of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, to exercise her constitutional right to veto the above-mentioned law and thereby support the principles of independent and free public broadcasting.
The Coalition also calls on the ruling party not to override the veto and to direct its own efforts and policies towards creating a free, safe and pluralistic media environment, “which is the constitutional and conventional obligation of the government.”
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