Tidbits of the region’s media

Chhetria Patrakar is Himal's roving media critic.

Pakistan's opposition leader Nawaz Sharif has recently been giving new meaning to the epithet 'power-hungry'. At a Muslim League rally where Sharif was speechifying on corruption in the government, news channels followed the apparently common practice of illegally tapping electricity to power the lights and sound generally required by these types of affairs. Newspapers pounced on Sharif for the power pinching, though of course he quickly denied personal responsibility. Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari has been appealing to another kind of higher power. But the goat sacrifices evidently being performed daily to ward off the forces of 'black magic' and the 'evil eye' do not appear to have been particularly successful in dealing with the president's woes emanating from the judiciary and the army. The Dawn reports that the president even brought in a flock of black partridges for good luck, but a live wire fell on the cage and electrocuted the birds. Talk about bad luck!

On the subject of things falling from the sky, keeping your eyes upwards might be fair advice during foul weather in Dhaka. Recently, strong winds brought down a billboard hoarding atop a six-story shopping centre, crushing four cars and killing two people. The hoarding, like 80 percent of all such advertisements in the capital, was actually illegal, since a ban came into effect in 2005 following similar incidents of smashing advertising. Spurred by this recent tragedy, the Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) launched an overnight drive. Planning to start with two hoardings built in front of a police station, however, the drive had to be called off mere hours after it began – after the police escort tagging along protested and departed upon learning that a police box would have to be demolished in order for work to continue. Concerned for their safety, DCC workers followed suit. Here's hoping that future demolitions aren't left to Mother Nature.

After disturbing attacks on the press in the Maldives – senior officials of DhiTV being attacked on their premises, an employer for the newspaper Haveeru being stabbed in the back – President Mohammed Nasheed's office released a statement saying, "Maldivian media is free and open now. Maldives government will always support the efforts of the journalists to keep this freedom alive and will value their efforts…" Hear, hear! The president's party, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has had a rocky relationship with DhiTV, which had been banned from MDP rallies. The police have even entered DhiTV studios as it aired live footage of opposition-party protests earlier this year, on the flimsy stance that the coverage would incite violence. The Maldives Journalists' Association has dispatched a contingent to Colombo to highlight the situation of the Maldives' press freedoms to the international community.

Perhaps more troubling for this fledgling democracy, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, drafting a piece of legislation called the Religious Unity Act, has recently been working very closely with at the Wahhabi NGO Jamiyathul Salaf, and is seriously considering its members' recommendations. Among the regulations submitted to and being considered by the attorney-general, Husnu Al-Suood, is the power to scrutinise presses and bookstores, and criminalise the publication of views deemed anti-Islamic. The Maldivian media may be 'free and open', as President Nasheed suggests, but what about the country's potentially persecuted presses?

Punishing dissent and supporting the majoritarian religion seems to be the inflammare  modus operandi in India as well. Scientist and human-rights activist Rati Rao has been brought to book for sedition for publishing materials three years ago (as editor of an internal bulletin of the People's Union for Civil Rights) that, according to the FIR, "favour[ed] naxals and Muslims" , and called upon minorities  "to build organizations in order to fight for their rights" and "the secular forces to raise their voice against such spread of communal hate." The complaint being that these "issues incite and spread intolerance, disbelief, discontent amongst the public". What instead seems to be spreading discontent in the public, in Karnataka anyway, is an article by Taslima Nasreen – who was quick to deny writing any article in Kannada whatsoever. As it turns out, people died, curfews were imposed and much ado was made out of what was actually merely a reprint of one of Nasreen's old articles, holding forth about the burqa and women's rights.

Speaking of 'heavenly abodes', the demise of veteran Nepali politician Girija Prasad Koirala saw some very interesting headlines. Are French and Spanish the language of grief? Republica ran with 'Adieu Girijababu', the inside special of The Himalayan Times went with possibly ironic 'Au revoir GPK' and The Kathmandu Post bade him "Adios". And why did Ekantipur put 'quote marks' around 'passes away'? This 'tendency' seems to be gaining ground, led by the Times of India's italicised and 'rampant, cheeky' use of 'alleged' – in 'keeping' with 'journalistic ethics', 'allegedly'.

With so many liquor ads, albeit disguised as sparkling water, pasted all over glossy magazines today, CP misses the good old days of simple pleasures like Rooh Afza, that gooey, sweet sherbet that made one long for hot summer days. Only in the pages of Newsline can one still find that ultimate drink of seduction, nestled next to ads for gripe water for colicky infants. While griping is as common as tweeting (indeed, the two seem to go hand in hand), maybe gripe water should be made mandatory at breakfast for disgruntled elements. Gruntle yourselves!

And still speaking of advertisements, Sri Lanka might be the one place you would expect to find commercials for so-called Development Lotteries. Gambling gains a respectable edge, evidently, when couched in terms of 'social obligation', 'enriching your life' and laundering ill-gotten wealth. Spectrum, a new monthly launched by the Nexus Research Group on the island, is glossy and slick, but is currently keeping its masthead a closely guarded secret. Wise move that, given the continued proclivity of the government to gun for journalists.

While droll 'breaking news' about much-mocked Times Now editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami "staying silent for a full five seconds during News Hour, allowing his guests to speak, and sending the TRP ratings for the channel soaring through the roof" has been making the rounds, the breathless anchors of other channels have not come in for their fair share of criticism. But while TV-talk-show-host-bashing forms the staple of media blogs, CP has to offer some defence and (unsolicited) admiration for the NDTV anchors, who consistently radiate politeness and hospitality. After every news bulletin and talk show they gush, "Thank you soooo much for watching. Have a very good day!" Makes one feel wanted, unlike the brusque "Goodbye" of the newly christened BBC Hubbub.

~ hettria Patrakar

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