On August 28 the RA Government approved the draft law on introducing an amendment to the RA Law “On Television and Radio” that will be submitted to the National Assembly in accordance with the existing procedures. “The decision is made in order to ensure the transfer from analogue TV and radio broadcasting to digital system on the territory of Armenia. It was noted that the solution proposed in the draft will allow making a transfer from one system to another in a smooth manner, avoiding the temporary licensing procedures in the transitional period”, the official report of the session says (quoted by the web-site of the RA Government, www.gov.am).
Following the sad tradition of long standing, the draft laws on media are developed and initiated by the Government within strictest secrecy. This time again the document came as a surprise for the journalistic community. Its approval in the Government was not preceded by an expert discussion, moreover, even after the session the document text remains unavailable. It has not been placed on the web-site, and all attempts of journalists to get it remain futile.
Taking into account the fact that a number of previous drafts were strongly criticized immediately after the publicizing, it is not surprising that the current legislative initiative of Government is seen by many to be another conspiracy against freedom of media.
