DON\’T OBLIGE THE NA OR GOVERNMENT\’S PROGRAMS

Alexan Harutiunian, the chief of the council of Public TV and Radio Company says.

– You assured in the press conference on November 29, 2006, a month before the RA President turned to the Constitutional Court, that you had removed the issue of compelling broadcasts to the Public TV by NA regulation from the agenda. Hat\’s why the CC February 16 decision was very surprising.
– That issue has never been removed from the agenda. It didn\’t refer to the parliamentary elections but you should take into consideration that few days remained for the date of my service to be expired. And I didn\’t want to speak about it before the end of the date, thinking that a new chairman of Public TV and Radio Company would be elected. European structures have also discussed that issue.
– You were constantly proposing in March of last year: “I\’m ready to sign a treaty with the NA about broadcasting parliamentary programs with the same terms as they are now but those items must be removed from the law.” But now you affirm that the terms will be changed anyway.
– At this moment, I\’m not ready to say what will happen. In my opinion, it has no connection with the decision of the Constitutional Court. It is more important that those items were removed from the law, which were a little shameful for the CE member country, for Armenia.
– Tigran Torosian, the head of Armenian delegation in PACE affirms that there is no CE member-country where the society remains uninformed about the works of legislative body. And more, it is even covered by separate TV channels in some countries.
– Yes it is, and I\’m not against to be broadcasted by separate TV channel or in other way. The point is that it isn\’t allowed to compel any media, even Public TV to broadcast parliamentary programs. If the programs of the government were broadcasted by law, it\’s all the same, it isn\’t right.
– Another mention about your last year persuasions: “I\’ll agree with the version to give money to the parliaments from the amount determined for us in budget, and the NA broadcasts its programs on its preferable TV Channel.” Do you agree with your words now?
– Yes, I do. If the National Assembly wants to be broadcasted by Public TV, we\’ll speak with the NA leadership and factions and form mutual adoptable terms. But NA decides what it must pay and for what. I don\’t want to repeat mechanically the experience of any country. Especially when Armenia has its experience, we understand that there is psychological problem, those programs have been broadcasted for years. But there is another problem, which isn\’t mentioned. Let\’s remember how the item to broadcast “Parliamentary Week” program on Sunday at 21:00 was adopted. “Orakarg” program was being broadcasted before it on Public TV, which a lot of parliamentary factions and groups didn\’t like. And they adopted a special law to broadcast “Parliamentary Week” at that same time. Then it isn\’t right to claim that the broadcast of parliamentary programs is connected only with the right or freedom of the speech. I emphasize, a special law has been adopted, which has limited the freedom of the speech.