BASSETERRE, St.Kitts, May 24th 2013 - The Government-owned radio and television station, ZIZ, is continuing to refuse to broadcast news releases and notices that have been provided to them for various events and news-making activities emanating from the opposition People's Action Movement, PAM.
This they continue to do, even though they have regularly given coverage to and broadcast numerous events and press releases from the Labour Party, which is currently in office.
One of the latest Labour Party events given prominent coverage by ZIZ was their 81st Annual Conference, held on Sunday 19th May,2013, at the St. Kitts Marriott Hotel, in Frigate Bay.
Not only was this event carried live, featuring speeches of party executives and non-executives, but ZIZ Television also rebroadcast portions of the conference, and they also used the weekly radio program, Ask the Prime Minister, aired on Tuesday 21st May, 2013, to feature speeches from Etsu Bradshaw, Prudence France and Poesy Southwell.
None of these are government officials and appeared at the conference, purely as Labour party supporters who professed their support for the party and its leader, during their presentations.
This is clear evidence that the Labour Party Administration is using ZIZ to deny members of the opposition from enjoying their constitutional rights to free speech and access to the government radio and television station that is owned by the people, all the citizens, of St. Kitts and Nevis, not just supporters and members of the Labour Party.
The People’s Action Movement is therefore crying foul on this continued descrimination, as ZIZ Broadcasting Corporation continues to refuse to air and totally ignore opposition party related news and information.
What is sad about this matter is that they have also refused to carry non commercial public notices while very often they broadcast similar types of releases from Labour and for multiple times daily.
The party’s Communications Unit said it has noticed that releases and news stories emanating from the People’s Action Movement seem to be totally ignored by the state-owned ZIZ.
“The director’s of ZIZ must understand that ZIZ belongs to the people and not the Labour Party, therefore not only should they be airing all political views but they should actually be making an extra effort to do so. ZIZ is STATE-OWNED and must not continue to be used as little more than a propaganda machine for Prime Minister Douglas and his now illegitimate government. ZIZ is maintained and supported by taxpayers who come from all political persuasions," said a spokesperson from the PAM Communications Unit.
The People’s Action Movement is therefore calling on the directors of ZIZ as well as the Minister of Information Hon. Nigel Carty to address the situation with some urgency.
"Our society, and we dare say, even our party have become so accustomed to the one-sided blatantly partisan news and programming of ZIZ, that it has become almost accepted as the way it should be. But it should not and we are calling on ZIZ as well as the Minister of Information Hon. Nigel Carty to immediately address this situation as it flies in the face of democracy and good governance," the opposition party declared.
"There was a recent judgment in Nevis regarding state-owned media and we will make an effort to deliver a copy of that judgment to the General Manager, Chairman and Board of ZIZ, in addition to making representatives from our party and it’s communications team, available to them to meet, to resolve this obviously blatantly partisan political matter,"said the spokesperson.
A simple browse through ZIZ’s news section on it’s webpage for the time period May 1st to May 21st shows not even ONE PAM related item on the website, despite many being provided to the station. Since May 1st the PAM Communications Unit has disseminated at least 20 news items and releases, none of which has been published on the website or aired in the ZIZ newscasts.
The State-Owned media outlet covered the Labour Party Conference this past weekend and have been airing stories and news items throughout the week regarding the conference. They were not present at PAM’s Convention this past April, neither have they been covering the annual event and other events including Press Conferences and Labour Day events.
This unfair practice must stop and the station must not allow itself to be used as part of the government's plans for elections that are not free and fair. We also call on the people of the country to speak out against this injustice.
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