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EwartBrown celebrates the demise of Bermuda's free press
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by Sal | October 24, 2009 at 03:20 pm
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Premier Ewart Brown celebrates the demise of the free press,gloating at the closure of the Mid-Ocean News
His address at the opening of the PLP's annual delegates' conference, reflected on the "evil deeds" of The Royal Gazette's 98-year-old weekly sister newspaper,the Mid-Ocean News, which folded due to financial troubles last week,was a watchdog on his criminal corrupt dealings.
Brown has been building a shadowy Government with all power vested in him and his small clique of family & friends,who benefit from insider deals,lucrative non-tendered contracts,millions of taxpayers money unaccounted for,he jailed the auditor general and sued the Newspapers ,preventing them to publish proof of his corruption and mismanagement.
Brown cut $800,000 /year gov't advertising revenue from the Royal Gazette's budget,thus crippling the Mid-Ocean into closure.Reporters Without Borders , whose mission is to fight for press freedom,denounced the decision,as The Inter American Press Association urging Government not to use official advertising as a "weapon of reprisal" against The Royal Gazette.
And after making a host of digs at the media throughout his speech, Dr. Brown made an apparent reference to a wish for this newspaper to go the same way by quoting the phrase: "One down, one to go."
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at 06:41 on November 5th, 2009
UN official rules that the Government's gag order against The Royal Gazette was wrong The UN Commissioner for Human Rights said that a gag order issued by the Premier was contrary to human rights and national legislation.
The statement was revealed last night at a public forum hosted by the Human Rights Commission (HRC), who wrote to Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay in May after Dr. Ewart Brown instructed his press secretary to reduce contact with The Royal Gazette and it's late sister paper, The Mid-Ocean News.
The gag order, which the Premier stated was intended to "prevent a total breakdown of communication between the Premier's office and these publications," no longer appears to be in place.
The UN Commissioner was quoted by HRC Chairwoman Venous Memari as saying: "Any directive banning an institution or government's department from relating with a specific newspaper would be contrary to human rights and indeed your national legislation."
Ms Memari said that the statement had also been sent to the Premier.
"I've been reporting since 1981," said Mr. Zuill. "For 17 years, I spent most of my time chasing the UBP, working on what they did wrong.
"This claim that we're holding hands is quite simply nonsense. If there was a change in government tomorrow, we would chase them the same way we chase the current government."
"I don't want this fight. I didn't pick it. I'd rather be having friendly debates rather than having this toxicity."
The forum, moderated by Rick Richardson, tackled the issues of responsible journalism and freedom of expression.
As the sole daily newspaper, Ms Memari said that The Royal Gazette had a monumental responsibility for unbiased journalism, one not shared in many other parts of the world.
Mr. Zuill agreed that a political lean in The Royal Gazette could be harmful to the community.
"Given our size, and given that we're the only daily newspaper, I don't feel we can take that approach, and frankly that's not the type of journalism I want to practice anyway.
"The emphasis for us is very clearly on fairness and accuracy.
"The risk is to be balanced in everything you do, it requires a suspension of judgement and of what would be important to readers. You stop reporting and become, essentially, a typist."
While Mr. Zuill stood by the newspaper's accuracy, he said that the Island's media are considering the introduction of a press complaints council, which would work to address many of the issues broached during the forum.
"It's something that we in the small media world here are discussing and talking about now," said Mr. Zuill. "Those discussions are continuing, we're working on something. There probably is room for something like that.
"I hope it would be used very little. All the media here do work very hard in terms of getting stories right."
at 02:38 on November 7th, 2009
Free speech comes with responsibility By Christian Dunleavy
"This is a political party that is issuing official statements anonymously, specifically so they can attack people without recourse.
We heard so much at the forum about responsible journalism, the power they wield and the dangers of ruining reputations. In fact that was Wendell Hollis's whole angle attacking the Gazette and defending the PLP and Dr. Brown at the forum other night.
Wendell is completely silent on the absolutely libelous nonsense and character attacks that appear routinely on the PLP website, the party he currently is affiliated with and campaigned for.
I have been the target of these attacks on multiple occasions. Members of my family have been targeted by these anonymous character assassinations along the lines of last night's attack. Even worse in one instance."
at 02:10 on November 11th, 2009
November 11th ,let us not forget Veteran's day!
by Father Denis Edward O'Brien, USMC
Freedom
It is the soldier, not the reporter, Who has given us the freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, Who has given us Freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, Who has given us the Freedom to demonstrate,
It is the soldier, who serves beneath the Flag, Who salutes the Flag,
Whose coffin is draped by the Flag, Who allows the protestor to burn the Flag,
It is the soldier, not the politician, Who has given his blood, his body, his life, Who has given us these FREEDOMS