The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has petitioned the Ministry of Communication over what it says is an affront on free expression, guidelines provided by the Information Services Department (ISD) on filming by foreign media companies.<\/p>\n
[contextly_sidebar id=”1trEEbVLwEvD3KNPrgYFiuOCH0xKZKWF”]The Information Services Department is reported to have issued a set of guidelines requiring foreign media on filming assignments in Ghana to among other things ensure that they are accompanied by officials of the Information Services Department who will ensure that they operate within laid down regulations.<\/p>\n
Also, the foreign media were required to forward a copy of their final production to the ISD through their respective missions before the film is aired publicly.<\/p>\n
But a petition by the Media Foundation for West Africa to the ministry of communication described as \u201cabsurd and a mockery of Ghana\u2019s status as one of the most progressive countries in the granting of media freedom\u201d, if the ISD is allowed to implement the said guidelines.<\/p>\n
The MFWA further insists the ISD will be flouting Article 162(2) of Ghana\u2019s 1992 constitution, which clearly stated that: \u201cSubject to this constitution and any other law not inconsistent with this constitution, there shall be no censorship in Ghana.\u201d<\/p>\n
The petition further stated that the laws on censorship is not limited to the local media hence their call for the suspension of the proposed guidelines.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe prohibition of censorship as spelt out in the constitution is not limited to local journalists working for the local media. Editors of media organizations \u2013 foreign or local \u2013 have the prerogative to decide the content to be broadcast or published by their organizations and they should not be subjected to any form of controls by state or non-state actors,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n
The MFWA is therefore calling on the Communications Ministry to scrap what it describes as an \u201cobnoxious policy which is a dark spot on Ghana\u2019s press freedom record.\u201d<\/p>\n
–<\/p>\n
By: Pius Amihere Eduku\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has petitioned the Ministry of Communication over what it says is an affront on free expression, guidelines provided by the Information Services Department (ISD) on filming by foreign media companies. [contextly_sidebar id=”1trEEbVLwEvD3KNPrgYFiuOCH0xKZKWF”]The Information Services Department is reported to have issued a set of guidelines requiring foreign media on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":105085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[43,38,6],"yoast_head":"\n