ZAGREB, June 15 (Hina) - The Government will not insist on the legal ban on the journalistic commentary in Croatian Radio Television (HRT) information programmes, Croatian Deputy Prime Minister Zeljka Antunovic said on Thursday. "The
Government will not insist on that regulation," Antunovic said during a debate on a government bill on the HRT at the House of Representatives. The Government is also willing to accept the majority of founded objections to the bill, which were presented by deputies, Antunovic said, calling for a public debate and a parliamentary consensus on the final bill on the HRT. Most parliamentary parties opposed the ban on journalistic commentary assessing the government's proposal could not be justified with the abuse of commentary over the past years. The cancellation of commentary was endorsed only by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) bench. SDP's Ingrid Anticevic-Martinovic said to keep the comm
ZAGREB, June 15 (Hina) - The Government will not insist on the legal
ban on the journalistic commentary in Croatian Radio Television
(HRT) information programmes, Croatian Deputy Prime Minister
Zeljka Antunovic said on Thursday.
"The Government will not insist on that regulation," Antunovic said
during a debate on a government bill on the HRT at the House of
Representatives.
The Government is also willing to accept the majority of founded
objections to the bill, which were presented by deputies, Antunovic
said, calling for a public debate and a parliamentary consensus on
the final bill on the HRT.
Most parliamentary parties opposed the ban on journalistic
commentary assessing the government's proposal could not be
justified with the abuse of commentary over the past years.
The cancellation of commentary was endorsed only by the Social
Democratic Party (SDP) bench. SDP's Ingrid Anticevic-Martinovic
said to keep the commentary would be "a further encouragement for
the promotion of special, particularly party interests on the
HRT."
The lower house today held a joint discussion on both the government
bill and the one forwarded by Croatian Democratic Union's (HDZ)
Jadranka Kosor. Both bills are aimed at transforming the HRT from a
state into a public medium.
"Public television is the one which broadcasts programmes for the
public and which is financed and controlled by the public," Kosor
and Antunovic said presenting the bills.
The two bills differ in three crucial items.
The government suggests that the third radio and television
channels be privatised, whereas Kosor believes this should not be
done, especially regarding the third radio channel, "which has been
a cultural and national institution for some 40 years."
Most deputies opposed the privatisation of the third radio
channel.
While Kosor suggests that the HRT Council consist of 29 members, of
whom six would be elected by parliament from among deputies, while
others would be appointed directly by institutions, associations,
the Catholic church and other religious communities, the
government believes the Council should have 15 members, who would
be appointed by the lower house by a two-thirds majority, on the
basis of public competition. According to the government, deputies
could not be members of the HRT Council.
The third crucial item regards the Transmitter and Communications
sector. While Kosor suggests that the sector remain within the HRT
system, the government proposes that the unit become a limited
liability company. Deputy Prime Minister Antunovic said this would
make transmitters available to all interested parties.
(hina) rml