Peru. Media Peru launched an alert with a view to the next presidential elections in the country. The following is the statement sent by the entity:
The issue absent in the government plans of the candidates for the Presidency of the Republic is: freedom of expression, media and broadcasting services. That should worry us because, not mentioning them, is not enough to guarantee these issues that are pillars for democracy and freedoms.
Candidates should include in their government programs, strictly, unrestricted respect for freedom of the press, information; the autonomy and independence of the media and the validity of concessions and authorizations of radio and television frequencies.
After reviewing the government plans of the candidates for the Presidency, we find the issues referred to in a dispersed and weak way in some cases and in others they are not even mentioned.
In the party "Peruanos Por el Kambio", Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, proposes to implement the proposals of the civil association Transparencia referring to the reports of advertising contracting of the media, related to the electoral reform and the Congress of the Republic.
The presidential candidate of the Frente Amplio party, Verónika Mendoza, said that if the elections win, the state will have the power to regulate the content of the media. "It is totally legitimate for the State to have a regulatory role and sanction when the rules are not respected," he said in an interview with the newspaper Gestión.
The next President of Peru must include in his government agenda the following:
Contribute to the free exercise of journalism with full guarantees.
Respect for the self-regulation of the media.
Unrestricted freedom of the press and expression.
Clear rules for the validity and development of broadcasting in the country.
Elimination of bureaucratic obstacles and greater transparency in the administration of the radio spectrum and the granting of radio and television frequencies.
Eliminate informality and illegality in the use of the radio spectrum (pirate radios and television stations), with the aim of protecting investments and the development of the industry.
Promote the technological development of broadcasting, granting tax benefits, eliminating bureaucratic obstacles in CUSTOMS-SUNAT and providing administrative facilities for the import of technology.
Improve the criteria and terms of the distribution of state advertising, including local and regional media, for this an additional question on the preference of the radio or television station should be implemented in all the surveys carried out by the INEI and the Ministries, in such a way that this result serves as a reference for the placement of state advertising.
