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Alert

ARTICLE 19 calls for measures to strengthen Radio Television Hong Kong's independence

(ARTICLE 19/IFEX) - The following is an ARTICLE 19 press release:

Hong Kong - ARTICLE 19 calls for measures to strengthen Radio Television Hong Kong's independence

ARTICLE 19 has called for Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) to be reconstituted as an independent public service broadcaster, governed by an independent board and with sufficient funding to guarantee a high quality service. In a submission to an inquiry into public service broadcasting in Hong Kong, ARTICLE 19 warns that RTHK's current status as a government department may fatally undermine its editorial independence and its capacity to deliver high quality public service programming.

ARTICLE 19's submission, which can be found at http://www.article19.org, expresses serious concern at the sustainability of public service broadcasting in Hong Kong in its current, government-linked, format, and suggests a number of reforms, including the following:

a. RTHK should be re-established as an independent legal body. Ownership of all assets it currently uses should be transferred to the new legal body.

b. As a publicly-funded resource, RTHK should be accountable to the public through an independent council or board of governors, qualified through expertise or education and committed to freedom of expression and public service broadcasting. This board should be appointed by the Legislative Council in an open and transparent process that allows for significant civil society involvement. The independence of both the board as a whole and its members individually should be guaranteed.

c. Funding should be guaranteed over multi-year cycles and be indexed against inflation. The level of the subsidy should be determined by the Legislative Council, on the recommendation of the RTHK Board of Governors.

d. RTHK should not be required by regulation to provide airtime to the Government.

The full text of ARTICLE 19's recommendations can be found at http://www.article19.org/pdfs/analysis/hong-kong-psb.pdf.