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State Department Documents and Publications
June 10, 2010
Statement by Ambassador Kelly on Armenia's Television, Radio Law;
U.S. urges Armenia to amend legislation in line with OSCE recommendations
United States Mission to the OSCE, Statement on Armenia's, Television
and Radio Law
As delivered by Ambassador Ian Kelly, to the Permanent Council, Vienna
June 10, 2010
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
All participating States have undertaken commitments to respect and
protect fundamental human rights such as freedom of the media and
expression. These rights should be enshrined in the legislation of any
participating State's reforms to its relevant legal framework on
regulations affecting the operations of media in their societies.
While we acknowledge the government of Armenia's ongoing efforts to
convert their TV broadcasting from analogue to a digital format, we
note and share with others concerns about the recent amendments to
Armenia's Law on Television and Radio, and the likelihood that the
amendments will reduce TV media pluralism as well as the Armenian
public's access to diverse information and opinions.
We welcomed the legal review conducted by the Office of the
Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFOM) and presented to the
Armenian government on May 25, and its recommendations on how to
modify the initial draft legislation. Because transparency and
good-faith consultations with affected stakeholders on media reforms
are crucial to their ultimate success, we fully supported the RFOM's
key recommendation that Armenia's National Assembly deputies convene a
working group composed of representatives of journalistic
non-governmental organizations, opposition parliamentarians, and
others to work on a fundamental revision of the draft law, fully
taking into account the remarks and suggestions of the working group
members, as well as the recommendations of international organizations
and their experts. The government's willingness to hold public
consultations on the draft law is to be commended. However, the rushed
legislative process unfortunately did not allow for the thorough
public discussion that such important legislation merited.
While we welcome the fact that some changes were made to the
legislation in line with the RFOM's recommendations, we note that a
number of concerns and recommendations remain unanswered. For example,
we note with concern that the amendments to the law will actually
reduce the number of TV media able to broadcast in Armenia for some
years, thereby restricting media pluralism.
In light of these concerns, we urge the Armenian government and
National Assembly to further amend the legislation, taking into
account the OSCE's recommendations, in order to make the legislation
consonant with international standards and OSCE commitments and to do
so in an inclusive and transparent manner.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)
From: A. Papazian
June 10, 2010
Statement by Ambassador Kelly on Armenia's Television, Radio Law;
U.S. urges Armenia to amend legislation in line with OSCE recommendations
United States Mission to the OSCE, Statement on Armenia's, Television
and Radio Law
As delivered by Ambassador Ian Kelly, to the Permanent Council, Vienna
June 10, 2010
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
All participating States have undertaken commitments to respect and
protect fundamental human rights such as freedom of the media and
expression. These rights should be enshrined in the legislation of any
participating State's reforms to its relevant legal framework on
regulations affecting the operations of media in their societies.
While we acknowledge the government of Armenia's ongoing efforts to
convert their TV broadcasting from analogue to a digital format, we
note and share with others concerns about the recent amendments to
Armenia's Law on Television and Radio, and the likelihood that the
amendments will reduce TV media pluralism as well as the Armenian
public's access to diverse information and opinions.
We welcomed the legal review conducted by the Office of the
Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFOM) and presented to the
Armenian government on May 25, and its recommendations on how to
modify the initial draft legislation. Because transparency and
good-faith consultations with affected stakeholders on media reforms
are crucial to their ultimate success, we fully supported the RFOM's
key recommendation that Armenia's National Assembly deputies convene a
working group composed of representatives of journalistic
non-governmental organizations, opposition parliamentarians, and
others to work on a fundamental revision of the draft law, fully
taking into account the remarks and suggestions of the working group
members, as well as the recommendations of international organizations
and their experts. The government's willingness to hold public
consultations on the draft law is to be commended. However, the rushed
legislative process unfortunately did not allow for the thorough
public discussion that such important legislation merited.
While we welcome the fact that some changes were made to the
legislation in line with the RFOM's recommendations, we note that a
number of concerns and recommendations remain unanswered. For example,
we note with concern that the amendments to the law will actually
reduce the number of TV media able to broadcast in Armenia for some
years, thereby restricting media pluralism.
In light of these concerns, we urge the Armenian government and
National Assembly to further amend the legislation, taking into
account the OSCE's recommendations, in order to make the legislation
consonant with international standards and OSCE commitments and to do
so in an inclusive and transparent manner.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)
From: A. Papazian