KATHMANDU: Today’s meeting of the House of Representatives (HoR) has unanimously endorsed the proposal seeking consideration on the ‘Mass Communications Council Bill, 2081’.
Responding to the queries raised on the bill in the meeting today, Minster for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung said the role of the proposed council would be spectacular for making the works being carried out by the Press Council further effective.
“The bill specifies that the Council will have the role to make the work being done by the press council more effective.
Further discussions will be held in the committee on the issues of authorities.
The code of conduct and action will also be discussed,” he said, adding that the council has been envisaged as an independent dignified institution.
Minister Gurung said that the views expressed by the lawmakers during the theoretical discussion were acceptable.
Earlier, it was registered as Media Council bill but it was brought as ‘Mass Communications Council Bill’, he said.
“The bill was necessary for the implementation of the National Mass Communications Policy-2073 BS”.
Speaker Devraj Ghimire shared that the lawmakers willing to propose amendment can submit their proposals to the Bill Section at Singhadurbar accordingly.
The next meeting of the HoR is scheduled to be held at 1.00 pm on March 5.
Earlier today, lawmakers highlighted the need for establishing a Mass Communications Council as an agency more managed and powerful than the Press Council.
They said that the Mass Communications Council bill is spectacular for propelling journalism as a clean and dignified profession.
In today’s meeting of the House of Representatives (HoR), Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung presented the proposal seeking consideration on the ‘Mass Communications Council Bill, 2081’ that was originated in the National Assembly.
Taking part in the deliberations on the bill, lawmakers advocated for the agency which is well-managed and powerful than the existing Press Council.
The law has been outlined to establish the Media Council for keeping professional conducts in journalism by developing and promoting healthy, independent, dignified and responsible journalism.
Delivering his remarks on the bill, lawmaker Raghujee Pant said the council should be made powerful and authoritative since the press council has not been effective in its responsibility to determine whether the code of conduct has been violated in journalism.
He asserted that the Council should not be kept as a section of the Communications Ministry.
Recalling that there was an arrangement of appointing Supreme Court Justice in the Press Council in the past, he said the existing structure of the Press Council is not appropriate.
“Implementation of journalist code of ethics is serious issue. So, there is a need of Communications Council having moral power”, he noted.
Another lawmaker Surya Bahadur Thapa said the tendency of misusing communications sector has increased.
The council is necessary for ethical, healthy and credible journalism, he added.
Lawmaker Gyan Bahadur Shahi said the provisions of receiving financial grants for fund management and allowing foreign funding in media are contravening to other laws of the land.
Also speaking on the occasion were Kiran Kumar Shah, Gyanendra Bahadur Karki, Ranju Kumari Jha, Bimala Subedi, Dr Chandra Karki, Shishir Khanal, Ishwari Devi Neupane, Madhav Sapkota, Thakur Prasad Gaire and Metmani Chaudhary, among others.
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