Unnecessary Censorship

The National Telecommunications Commission usually flies under the radar of public awareness. But when the group comes out with a ruling, it is often a noteworthy declaration.

The request on Wednesday for permission to govern the content of every community radio and satellite TV station was sensational by any standard. The NTC was charged by the 1997 Constitution to return the public airwaves to the public. Now, the commission proposes to place a whole new set of public broadcasters under its control, including monitoring and censoring the broadcasts themselves.

The regulations are only a proposal by the NTC. It is disturbing that the government has apparently leapt to support the commission's request, without any public input or parliamentary discussion.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion...sary-censorship

-- Bangkok Post 15/05/09