Tag: Maldives Broadcasting Commission

MBC orders Medianet to stop airing World Cup matches on channels except TVM and VTV

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has ordered Medianet to stop airing FIFA world cup matches on any channel besides local state broadcaster TVM and privately owned channel VTV.

In a letter sent to Medianet, MBC stated that the agreement with Sony MSM – which Medianet had shared with MBC – was not made in accordance with the rebroadcasting regulations.

MBC also stated that Medianet had charged an extra fee from customers for viewing the matches on channels 100 and 100 plus against the rebroadcasting regulations.

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State broadcaster slams “irresponsible” broadcasting commission report on election coverage

The Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) has heavily criticised a report by the Broadcasting Commission on television prime time coverage of last year’s presidential election campaign, calling on the broadcasting regulator to revise “misleading” elements of the report.

In a four-page press release slamming the “irresponsible” report, the state broadcaster contended that the findings were presented in a way that could cause “loss of public confidence” in the television and radio channels operated by MBC.

The report was based on monitoring of prime time (8pm to 11pm) content as well as direct access time on all television stations in the month leading up to the first round of the presidential election on September 7, 2013.

“The monitoring of the electoral content of all the TV stations was carried out to observe the performances of the stations in order to measure the total coverage time allocated for presidential candidates, the ethical conduct of the content aired and the amount of electoral content during prime time and direct access,” the report explained.

According to the report, state broadcaster Television Maldives (TVM) allocated the highest percentage of airtime to the Elections Commission (20.6 percent), followed by the President/Government (20.4 percent), Gasim Ibrahim (18.24 percent), Abdulla Yameen (16.34 percent), and then-President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik (14.68 percent).

Opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) presidential candidate, former President Mohamed Nasheed, received the lowest prime time coverage with 9.68 percent.

Similarly, in the last week of the presidential campaign, 12.24 percent of TVM’s coverage of Nasheed’s campaign was negative while other presidential candidates, Gasim Ibrahim and the incumbent Dr Waheed, received 100 percent positive coverage.

Candidate Yameen meanwhile received 5.41 negative coverage during the final week.

“Questionable”

Defending its election coverage, MBC insisted in its press statement that TVM’s news was impartial, unbiased and adhered to principles of journalism.

The state broadcaster however conceded that some presidential candidates received “marginally” more coverage as they carried out more campaign activities, which was unavoidable based on “newsworthiness”.

MBC also explained that it was not practical to ensure that each candidate received equal amount of time during a news bulletin or news programme.

Instead, the state broadcaster sought to provide equal time overall during the presidential campaign period, the statement noted.

Highlighting a number of issues with the report, MBC objected to the broadcasting commission deciding to focus only on prime time coverage and limiting the review period to one month while the presidential election campaign continued on to a second round.

Moreover, MBC contended that the guidelines formulated to monitor election coverage could not be used to accurately determine bias or negative coverage.

The broadcasting commission considered the tone of coverage to determine if a subject was portrayed in a positive, neutral or negative light for a qualitative measurement.

MBC however contended that the perceived tone was dependent on a subjective judgment by the monitoring individual based on his or her political affiliation.

MBC questioned the objective of the broadcasting commission in issuing the report as a draft was not shared with broadcasters prior to publication.

The press release also questioned the quality of the work done in compiling the report, noting that members of the team of monitors were given a one-day training course.

According to the report, 11 staff members of the commission “functioned as monitors with a chief monitor who coordinated and supervised the monitoring work.”

“Each monitor was assigned a specific channel to monitor on a weekly rotation basis. To carry out the monitoring tasks professionally and impartially, the monitoring team was provided a one day training exercise where they had to complete mock monitoring forms after watching one hour prime time content,” the report explained.

MBC meanwhile noted that the Commonwealth, European Union and local NGO Transparency Maldives had praised the state broadcaster’s election coverage following their observation of the presidential election.

The press release concluded with assurances to the public that MBC would offer clarification on “misleading” issues after further examination of the report.

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MBC warns DhiTV for airing ‘ADK’ Nashid’s picture upside down

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has revealed that it has received further complaints regarding DhiTV’s airing of uspide down pictures – which it has argued violates broadcasting practices.

The new complaint – submitted on April 5 – concerned a picture of the newly elected Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP-elect Ahmed Nashid.

A statement on the commission’s website said that the complaint alleges that DhiTV broadcast the picture of Nashid – also the owner of ADK hospital – upside down as well as accusing him of being a thief.

MBC said that the pictures of Nashid were broadcast before more recent instructions to refrain from airing such images of leading politicians and civil servants.

On April 17, DhiTV aired pictures of MBC Chair Mohamed Shaheeb following the commission’s warning that strict measures would be taken against the station for airing similar pictures of other prominent figures.

The offending photo of MBC’s Shaheeb on DhiFM’s visual radio channel – also aired on DhiTV during its downtime – was accompanied by a news sticker that read, ‘Experts say that making such a harsh announcement while [we] have been apologising in compliance with the Broadcasting Commission’s instructions is a step backwards for democracy’.

Speaking to the press at the time, Shaheeb said that the commission had not decided what action it would take against DhiFM Plus, noting that the commission did not have the authority to withhold the broadcasting license of any TV station despite being the institution empowered to issue such licenses.

On March 24, 2014, MBC asked private media outlet DhiFM Plus to issue a public apology for broadcasting the upside down picture of former Elections Commissioner President Fuwad Thowfeek.

In a statement issued at the time, the commission noted that the act was in violation of the broadcasting code of practice and that it had violated the honour of Thowfeek

On February 12, 2014, the MBC advised private TV station DhiTV and its sister company, the radio station DhiFM Plus, to stop using the upside down images then Elections Commissioner Fuwad Thowfeek.

MBC had given similar advice to the two stations in November last year after they had shown upside down photos of three members of the Elections Commission – Thowfeek, Ahmed Fayaz, and Ali Mohamed Manik – with a caption alleging that they had committed electoral fraud in the annulled September 7 presidential election.

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MBC to investigate DhiFM Plus after upside down photo of commission chair broadcast

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has today started investigating a case DhiFM Plus’s airing of an upside down photos of the commission’s Chair Mohamed Shaheeb.

Yesterday DhiFM Plus aired pictures of Shaheeb following the commission’s warning that measures would be taken against the private TV station for airing similar pictures of senior government officials and politicians.

The commission has repeatedly informed the station that such actions violated the MBC code of ethics.

Speaking during a press conference today, MBC’s Director General Mohamed Nasih said that the investigation was initiated by the commission itself, local media reported.

Naish was quoted as saying that Commission Chair Shaheeb would not take part in any meetings held regarding the issue as the case was related to him and so may represent a conflict of interest.

Shaheeb told the media that the commission had not decided what action it would take against DhiFM Plus, noting that the commission did not have the authority to withhold the broadcasting license of any TV station despite being the institution empowered to issue such licenses.

He said that the commission has to file a case with the court if it wished to withhold the license of a TV station.

In a statement given yesterday, MBC said that members unanimously decided to issue a warning to Broadcasting Maldives Pvt Ltd – the company that operates DhiTV – under article 44(a)(2) of the Broadcasting Commission Act after the TV station had aired Election Commission (EC) members’ photos upside down.

The upside down photo of MBC’s Shaheeb on DhiFM’s visual radio channel – also aired on DhiTV during its downtime – was accompanied by a news sticker that read, ‘Experts say that making such a harsh announcement while [we] have been apologising in compliance with the Broadcasting Commission’s instructions is a step backwards for democracy’.

On March 24, 2014, MBC asked private media outlet DhiFM Plus to issue a public apology for broadcasting the upside down picture of former Elections Commissioner President Fuwad Thowfeek.

In a statement issued at the time, the commission noted that the act was in violation of the broadcasting code of practice and that it had violated the honour of Thowfeek

On February 12, 2014, the MBC advised private TV station DhiTV and its sister company, the radio station DhiFM Plus, to stop using the upside down images Thowfeek.

MBC had given similar advice to the two stations in November last year after they had shown upside down photos of three members of the EC – Thowfeek, Ahmed Fayaz, and Ali Mohamed Manik – with a caption alleging that they had committed electoral fraud in the annulled September 7 presidential election.

The broadcasting commission is a seven-member body entrusted with implementation of broadcasting policy, regulation of broadcasting industry, and the promotion of responsible broadcasting.

It was formed in 2010 under the Broadcasting Act.

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Broadcasting Commission cannot regulate way in which Supreme Court is addressed

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has told the Supreme Court that asking media to write the names of persons in a specific way is against international best practice.

The commission’s letter was sent to the Supreme Court on Sunday (March 16) in response to a court request for MBC to enforce strict rules on how Supreme Court judges must be addressed in the media.

It was also pointed out to the court that the commission is mandated with regulating broadcast media alone.

MBC claims to have received a letter suggesting that the court’s justices were being addressed in ways other than how they should be, requesting that the commission inform all media outlets on the appropriate manner in which to write the names of the Supreme Court bench.

An official at MBC told Minivan News that the letter stipulated the Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz’s was to be preceded by the title ‘Chief Justice of the Maldives Honorable Al Ustaz’, the title ‘Justice Honorable Dr’ should be used for Justice Dr Ahmed Abdulla Didi, and ‘Justice Honorable Al Ustaz’ for the rest of the bench.

MBC’s reply to the court – signed by the commission President Mohamed Shaheeb – stated that it was not within the commission’s mandate to dictate the content of any station, and that broadcasters were free to work in accordance to their own editorial guidelines in such matters.

The commission highlighted that it does only what is mandated by the Broadcasting Act and regulations, and that it ensures that all licensed broadcasters abide by the code of conduct formulated by the commission.

The Maldives Media Council – established under the Maldives Media Council Act – is mandated with establishing and maintaining a code of conduct for journalists in the country. Minivan News has learned that the council has yet to be approached by court on this matter.

Meanwhile, the Maldives Journalists Association President Ahmed ‘Hirigaa’ Zahir has said that the association is also of the view that journalists should not be forced to use names of anyone in a specific way.

“Anyone can request the media to use write their name how they want it to be written. But it should not be a requirement. Media reports in simple language,” said Zahir.

“While members of parliament are addressed as ‘honorable member’ in the parliament or justices are addressed in a specific way within the courtroom, it does not have to be the case in reporting or speaking in general public.”

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Raajje TV and VTV ordered to apologise for defamation

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has ordered private broadcasters Raajje TV and Villa TV (VTV) to apologise for defamatory material and ordered the stations to broadcast live events with a delay to minimise future defamation.

The broadcast media regulator said Raajje TV had aired an opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) meeting on September 23, 2013, in which an MDP member had defamed the Supreme Court bench.

VTV is said to have aired material defamatory to MDP presidential candidate Mohamed Nasheed, MP Rozaina Adam, and Elections Commission President Fuwad Thowfeek during its daily talk show ‘Fasmanzaru’ on September 27, 2013.

MBC has ordered Rajje TV and VTV to broadcast an apology and to allow the wronged party to speak in their defense by January 31. Furthermore, VTV has been ordered to broadcast ‘Fasmanzaru’ with a broadcast delay and Raajje TV has been ordered to broadcast all political events with a broadcast delay.

Speaking to Minivan News, VTV CEO Ibrahim Khaleel said the MBC’s decision “limited the freedom of the press”, and that the station did not see any reason to air an apology.

According to Khaleel, MBC ordered VTV to apologise for comments made on air by MP Ilham Ahmed and MP ‘Redwave’ Ahmed Saleem.

“The constitution guarantees freedom of expression within the tenets of Islam and we, as a TV station, gave airtime to politicians to express their opinions. No one has said anything contrary to a tenet of Islam,” Khaleel argued.

If any party feels they have been wronged, then the laws allow them to pursue defamation charges or to seek compensation through other means, he added.

Deputy CEO of Raajje TV Yamin Rasheed also condemned the MBC’s decision as “discriminatory”.

“It is not fair when MBC only orders specific TV channels to air specific programmes or events with a delay,” Yamin said arguing that other broadcasters must also be ordered to broadcast all political events with a delay.

Yamin also expressed concern over MBC ordering the station to air an apology over an MDP MP’s comments. However, he said Raajje TV would broadcast an apology and would allow the Supreme Court judges an hour to speak in their defense.

MBC has previously ordered Raajje TV, Dhi TV, and Dhi FM to apologise for defamatory material.

Raajje TV was ordered to apologise in December 2013 for airing a report defaming the Supreme Court, but MBC said the report does not constitute a national security threat as alleged by the apex court.

Furthermore, in July 2012, MBC ordered Raajje TV to apologise for airing a report alleging that a policeman had stolen petrol from a motorbike, and in August 2012 the station was ordered to issue an apology on three consecutive nights for publicising Defense Minister Mohamed Nazim’s text messages

In March 2012, Dhi FM was similarly reprimanded for content aired following the overthrow of Nasheed’s administration on February 8, 2012.

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MBC requests government’s commitment to uphold media freedom

Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has requested President Abdulla Yameen include two points related to media freedom in his “first hundred days” plans – a series of objectives announced by government institutions to be achieved within the first hundred days of his presidency.

In a letter addressed to the President Yameen, MBC President Mohamed Shaheeb requested to that all cases filed against journalists and broadcasters be withdrawn and for the president and government institutions to sign the five-point pledge to uphold media freedom proposed by the commission.

He asked the president to make these two requests part of the hundred-day road map, suggesting said that doing so will show the new government’s level of commitment to ensure media freedom in the Maldives.

MBC’s five-point pledge was first formulated in 2013 during Dr Mohamed Waheed’s presidency. The commission had planned and announced an event for signing the pledge to coincide with World Press Freedom Day, although the event was later cancelled.

The “right to espouse, disseminate and publish news, information, views and ideas” is enshrined in Article 28 of the constitution, as is the right to protect sources of information.

The five points of the pledge were as follows;

  • To be free from prejudice by giving fair and equal access to the media.
  • To ensure the safety of journalists,
  • To protect journalists from punitive measures and harassment,
  • To provide a conducive environment for journalists to do their jobs,
  • To enhance the role of media in a democracy by allowing free flow of information.

During President Waheed’s presidency, the Maldives saw a decline in press freedom, falling thirty places on the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Index to 103 rd.

RSF noted that, following the events of 7 February 2012, the Maldives witnessed violence and threats against journalists, including the first attempted murder of a journalist.

“Many journalists have been arrested, assaulted and threatened during anti-government protests,” reported the press freedom NGO.

President Yameen’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) was a coalition partner in the Waheed government, with party members holding various senior government posts. Yameen’s Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was Home Minister under Waheed, at the time describing the opposition MDP aligned ‘Raajje TV’ as an “enemy of the state”.

Raajje TV faced the most discrimination and violence during this period – one prominent journalist was seriously injured in an attack in February last year, before the station’s headquarters were burned down last October in a premeditated arson attack.

The destruction of Raajje’s studio brought international condemnation, with particular criticism reserved for the police’s failure to prevent the attack. The Police Integrity Commission last month recommended prosecution of two officers in relation to their negligence on the night of the attack.

Shortly after President Yameen’s inaugration, police sent a case involving senior officials RTV for criminal prosecution regarding the broadcasting of a report critical of the Supreme Court. Both MBC and the Maldves Media Council (MMC) – independent institutions tasked with media regulation – have expressed concern over the matter.

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MBC, broadcasting commission summoned to parliamentary committee over televising “politicised” religious sermon

A religious sermon televised live on Television Maldives (TVM) was interrupted for violating the state broadcaster’s guidelines, Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) Chairman Ibrahim Umar Manik told a parliamentary sub-committee today.

The MBC chairman along with members of the Maldives Broadcasting Commission were summoned before the Independent Institutions Committee following complaints by MPs of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) that the sermon by religious NGO Jamiyyathul Salaf preacher Sheikh Adam Shameem Ibrahim infringed the rights of the party’s presidential candidate.

“We definitely do not consider [televising the sermon] as anti-campaigning against a particular candidate using religion. [But] around 11:35pm, because his talk was changing a little, we stopped the live [broadcasting],” Manik was quoted as saying by local media.

The state television decided to approve the live broadcast after considering whether it involved either a politician or political party and after determining if the Islamic Ministry had authorised the sermon, Manik explained.

Asked by MPs whether he had heard the Sheikh’s criticism of the MDP’s guest house policy, Manik said MBC will evaluate the content of the sermon and take measures.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Rozaina Adam, a member of the sub-committee, explained that the complaints alleged that the religious scholars politicised the sermon titled ‘Andhalus,’ which MDP MPs contended resembled negative campaigning more than a religious sermon.

Rozaina said that MBC Chairman Manik told the committee that the MBC did a background check on the two sheikhs that delivered the sermon to determine if they had previously been in any political parties or if they were affiliated with any political party. Manik claimed that the background check showed that the sheikhs were not involved in political activities.

According to Rozaina, MDP MP Ali Waheed in the meeting noted that Sheikh Shameem had recently visited his constituency and told the people of the area that MDP would kill him if former President Mohamed Nasheed was re-elected and openly campaigned against the party’s candidate.

Rozaina observed that Sheikh Shameem last night talked against MDP policies such as introducing mid-market tourism but did not reflect on more important issues in terms of religion such as murder, gang violence and drugs.

“The MBC Chairman told the MPs that they cut the live feed when the Sheikhs speech was getting politicised,” Rozaina said. “But I don’t know if they actually cut the live feed.”

The sermon last night was organised by NGO Salaf, attended by senior Adhaalath Party members and broadcast live on all local television channels with the exception of MDP-aligned Raajje TV.

The sermons were delivered by Salaf preachers Sheikh Adam Shameem and Sheikh Ahmed Sameer under the title “The Fall of Andalus (Spain).”

Advertisements on social media stated that “the fall of Andalus (Spain) is an event Muslims will never forget. Why did it happen? What lead to the fall of this great Muslim state and what lessons can we draw from this. We present to you ‘Andalus’ by Sheikh Adam Shameem and Sheikh Ahmed Sameer.”

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Raajje TV alleges Maldives Broadcasting Commission warning “biased”

Raajje TV claims a warning issued to them late last week by the Maldives Broadcasting Commission was biased, given their lack of transparent procedures for determining code of conduct violations.

“The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) sent a letter to Raajje TV last Thursday (June 6) saying the news aired on 23 February 2013 violated their code of conduct,” Deputy CEO of Raajje TV Yamin Rasheed told Minivan News today (June 8).

“Raajje TV strongly believes the commission’s decision is biased and will appeal to Maldives Media Council (MMC), the highest authority,” Rasheed stated.

MBC investigated a complaint that Raajje TV “broadcast false information” when its news-ticker displayed information that the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) had called on its members to slaughter Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) members, Sun Online reported.

The commission’s investigation concluded that Raajje TV violated the code of practice by “showing images, sounds or texts of content that might damage a person’s dignity or is demeaning in nature”, as stated in articles 3(a), 5(a) and (b), according to local media.

“The ‘caution’ [letter MBC issued] is a warning. If that repeats they will take actions within broadcasting law, which might include temporary suspension of Raajje TV’s broadcast licence,” Rasheed explained.

He believes that MBC’s investigative decision making process is bias, because there is no transparent procedure for determining [code of] conduct violations.

“It is not clear how they concluded these statements, there is no clear procedure, it is not publicly announced,” said Rasheed. “I don’t know how they came to that conclusion.”

“We trust our journalists to report what they hear and see as true, they report the facts,” he stated.

Regarding the February 23 broadcast in question, Rasheed explained that “PPM officials called the MDP a terrorist group at that rally, we have the recorded footage.”

“Yet we don’t know what the opposition submitted against us, we don’t know specifically what the MBC is concerned about [regarding the code of conduct],” said Rasheed.

Rasheed claimed that MBC had “done nothing” in regard to code of conduct violations committed by Television Maldives (TVM), Villa TV (VTV), DhiTV and their sister network DhiFM, which “shows their bias”.

“DhiTV and VTV are constantly harassing politicians, for example saying Nasheed is anti-religious and many other things against him. DhiFM has shown pornographic footage, while the state broadcaster TVM has shown anti-social footage related to Maldivian culture of couples kissing, which is illegal,” alleged Rasheed.

VTV is owed by resort tycoon and Judicial Services Commission (JSC) member, Jumhoree Party (JP) Leader and MP Gasim Ibrahim.

DhiTV and DhiFM are predominantly owned by Champa Mohamed Moosa, a prominent businessman and resort owner in the Maldives.

In March 2013, MBC called for the Maldives Media Company, which owns DhiFM Plus, to air a statement of apology without any reservations from the station for violating the broadcasting code of conduct after allegedly airing pornographic content during a late night news show.

In July 2011, MBC reprimanded DhiFM for repeated use of “indecent language” during programmes aired by the radio station and simultaneously broadcast live by sister network DhiTV in its “visual radio” segment.

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission, as well as its Vice President Mohamed Shahyb, were not responding to calls at time of press.

Maldives Media Council support

Raajje TV plans to appeal the MBC warning with the MMC on Sunday or Monday, according to Rasheed.

“The only thing we see from MBC is the intention to penalise media,” claimed Rasheed.

Conversely, Rasheed praised the MMC for their positive interactions with and support of free press in the Maldives.

“The media council is our parental body, was elected from within the media groups, and is more independent than the commission,” said Rasheed.

“They have a responsibility to protect our rights and regulations and are doing things for media freedom as well as giving us many training opportunities,” he continued.

“They are more all-encompassing in dealing with media because they deal with both print and broadcast journalism,” he added.

Rasheed hopes to receive MMC support in regard to the MBC warning issued, since they previously filed a case with the prosecutor general against the President’s Office for intentionally not cooperating with Raajje TV.

In April, the Civil Court ruled in favour of Raajje TV in its lawsuit against the President’s Office for barring the opposition-aligned television station from President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s press conferences and functions.

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