Budget : Committee Stage — 18th Day

Votes of the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunication and Media

In 1997 thousands of workers were sent out of Lake House covered with green paint
- Moulana

Parliament met at 9.30 a.m. yesterday with Speaker K. B. Ratnayake in the chair.

After announcements were made by Speaker, and Ministers answered Oral Ques-tions House sat in Committee to discuss votes of the Ministry of Posts, Teleco-mmunication and Media.

Tyronne Fernando (UNP-Colombo district) moved a cut of Rs. 10 from the votes of the Ministry of Posts, Telecom-munication and Media.

He said: The Lake House was an honourable place since the earlier times but today the Daily News has become a SLFP rag.

Newspapers must do propaganda but they got to be balanced. The Ministry of Media has become a mudslinging ministry.

It is against the code of conduct of electronic media to publish liquor and tobacco. But all the television stations do publish advertisements about liquor and tobacco.

Today you have all those who supported you such as the free media. The Broad-casting Authority Bill has not seen the light of the day.

Will the Minister give an undertaking that he will not give the Laggala transmission station to Hiru Radio.

Minister Mangala Samaraweera: I will not give it to any private radio station.

Tyronne Fernando: Lak Handa advertising revenue has come down from Rs. 100 million to Rs. 50 million. Lak Handa revenue goes to Hiru.

The Ministry is paying Rs. 85,000 per programme to the Rupavahini Corpo-ration for the programme called Kodi-winaya. I appreciate the acting of Wilson Gunaratne who plays the role of the late J. R. Jayewardene in the programme. You are ridiculing and lampooning late leaders of the country.

It is not proper to ridicule dead people. However, if you justify this type of programme why do you not also show your own leaders such as S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike and Mahanama Samaraweera who are no more among the living.

I want to ask the Minister about the Select Committee on Media.

Alavi Moulana, Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government said: You are talking about culture while there were vultures on the road then. You forgot to mention Richard de Zoysa and others. In 1977 thousands of workers were sent out of Lake House covered with green paint some of them died.

Today the people are free to express their views. Was the opposition allowed on the Rupavahini? "Ratu Ira" and "Always Breakdown" would not have been allowed then. Mr. Hameed’s speech is published verbatim in the Daily News. We were not given such an opportunity during your time. The opposition goes helter skelter in the shelter of this house. Have some consideration at least to the kith and kin. Let this House not be used for character assassination.

John Amaratunga (UNP-Gampaha district) said: We meet the Minister of Posts, Telecommu-nication and Media for the first time after the credit cond debate.

The Minister is carrying on a mudslinging job, while the heads of two institutions are working arbitrarily. One is the representative of Nippon Telephone and Teleg-raph company who heads the Telecom and the other is the Post Master General.

While you go on slinging mud both these organisations are deteriorating.

The Telecom is charging subscriber very unjustly. The Telecom agreement allows the managing company to increase the charges according to the inflation rate. In 2000 the charges are to be increased by 20 per cent and in 2001 by 15 per cent. In addition to these charges the subscribers have to pay 4 per cent defence levy and 12 1/2 per cent GST.

I want to tell the House firmly that we would not uphold any unacceptable terms of the telecom Agreement when we come into power.

Now let me talk about the Postal Department. During your four years in power you increased the postage by Rs. 2.50. You came to power by promising to bring down the cost of living. What are you doing today.

There was an inquiry against the Post Master General Mrs. Kotakadeniya over some charges against her. I want to know where that report is.

Mail service has deteriorated that it takes days for a letter to reach an addressee. All foreign letters too are being unduly delayed.

Bennet Cooray (PA-Colombo district) said: The circular issued on the postal rates was a clear violation of members privilege. This person should be punished. But this kind of situation arises because we have erased the fear from the minds of men. Earlier this kind of irresponsible act would have led to an unpleasant situation.

Journalists should not be swayed by the dictates of their owners. I also think that their age of retirement should be made sixty five.

Rupavahini and Lakhanda have become more innovative in their selection of programmes. It is also important that Rupavahini cut down the number of advertisements during their news telecast.

The Government Publications Bureau should be made more efficient. I am glad to hear that Lalith R. Silva report is now in operation. Don’t let the trade union tie the hands of its administration. We should also acknowledge the phenomenal growth in the telecommunication sector under the PA government.

Y. Balachandran (DPLF-Vanni district) said: The Minister with his two able deputies has done a good job of work for the Vanni district.

W. J. M. Lokubandara (UNP-Badulla district) said: It is unfortunate that the postal charges were raised by a government that claims to be caring and compassionate.

Why is Lake House giving place to low-down methods to highlight our comments in this House in derogatory terms. I am referred to as ‘Kolakenda’ and ‘Ayubowan’. Media freedom is exploited for your use. You use Rupavahini for your benefit. At a time when you are crediting everything to Premadasa’s account you said on Rupavahini that we did not ask for a commission to inquire into Gamini Dissanayaka’s death.

We handed over an advanced telecommunications sector. You were trying to stifle its advancement by a Broadcasting Authority Bill. What are the innovative policies you have formulated by yourself?

Why is the select committee inoperative.

Vasudeva Nanayakkara (PA-Ratnapura district) said: I am opposed to the increase of postage. I am opposed to all forms burdens heaped up on the people.

But I would ask Mr. W. J. M. Lokubandara who said the People’s Alliance failed to bring in the change that they promised whether he had any intention to bring in such a change. Please examine your conscience.

You hurt the people more and more while ruling the country. You had no intention of changing what were policies that your government was following. Therefore do you think you have the right to pose such a question?

I oppose burdens heaped up on people. Therefore I did not cast my vote in support of the budget.

I know some changes are required in the Postal Department. I don’t say the answer is privatisation. The Postal Department’s revenue must increase without heaping up burdens on the people. Let us examine how we can do this.

Why did you shift the Postal Depart-ment to the Twin Towers which is a building owned by foreigners. Eighty five percent of the Twin Tower office space is being occupied by government offices. You are paying high rents to show foreigners how affluent you are.

You gave the telecom to a Japanese. Do you think we could not have retained this national wealth to ourselves and provide the services by ourselves and benefit ourselves from it.

Telecom employees have a serious problem with regard to the manner in which their share of the Telecom equity is transferred to them. Under normal circumstance the workers are entitled to 10 per cent of the full share capital of Telecom. But under the scheme adopted in the case of Telecom the employees’ share is three per cent of 65 per cent government ownership.

Sarath Amunugama (UNP-Kandy district) This is the first time I am hearing such a debate. Is this a government or a pickle. There is no consensus, no discipline. If the Daily News says there is a conspiracy against the government by us include Vasudeva Nanay-akkara’s name as well.

(Vasudeva Nanayakkara — I am not a conspirator). Amunugama — Neither are we, but the Daily News says so.

The years of UNP rule have set the background for an advanced media environment and media personnel. It is one of the most sought after careers. Your ministry however has neglected the training and research in the field of human resources in the media. Even the Minister admits that it has been left out unfortunately. It is your duty to establish media training institutions for the benefit of young aspirants specially unemployed graduates who have studied mass media as subjects in universities.

Why was the Japanese media assistance project done away by your ministry. When a huge amount of money is made available you don’t made use of it.

Why are you not making use of foreign assistance to develop the radio and television coverage. There is a section of the country that don’t receive radio and television broadcasts. There has been no development whatsoever. Make use of German and Japanese assistance extended to you. The "Discovery Channel" should be broadcast in Sinhala as well. You should improve on the language programmes on Rupavahini. So you can see that there is no conspiracy but constructive suggestions for improvement.

Ediriweera Premaratne (PA-Kaluara district) said: An allegation was made by Mr. Tyronne Fernando and W. J. M. Lokubandara that the government was using the Lake House to assassinate the characters of the past leaders of the UNP. Lokubandara spoke very painfully about Gamini Dissanayake.

I would ask him why he did not raise the issue when he was in a Cabinet of the UNP as to how Gamini Dissanayake was dragged before the court on charges of abducting Prof. Buultgens.

When Gamini Dissanayake, Lalith Athulathmudali and many others went to the Fort Railway Station area to tell the wrong doings of the then government mobs attacked not Gamini Dissanayake and other politicians but the media personnel who went there to cover the campaign. Three reporters were admitted to hospital. Rupees three lakhs worth of cameras were destroyed by the mob.

In a complaint made by Gamini Dissanayake to police on this incident he gave a list of names of a number of notorious criminals as the attackers. The UNP used such criminals to attack the media personnel.

This is the culture of a government in those dark days.

P. Chandrakumar (EPDP-Jaffna district) said: There is a threat to media freedom even under the PA government. Tamil journalists were arrested and detained, Manikkavasagam and Sri Gajan were two of the Tamil journalists who were arrested without a valid reason. What did the government do after they were released.

The Tamil newspapermen have as much right as the others to interview the LTTE. You didn’t do anything to the two Sinhala media men who went and met the LTTE recently. These Tamil media men did not even receive the support of their Sinhalese counterparts.

Some racialist newspapers are sowing the seeds of racialism. Don’t let these racially minded journalists exploit media freedom.

Press censorship is going on adinfinitum. Foreign press censorship is relaxed. The entire news is available to the entire world. It is not only through the local media that the LTTE gets information. You have just tied the hands of the local media men. The government should remove this press censorship.

There is a discriminatory attitude shown to the Tamil section of the Lake House. Thinakaran paper office lacks facilities.

The pension scheme for the media should be implemented. Rupavahini does not have an adequate number of Tamil staff and the number of Tamil programmes should be increased. The postal code scheme should be fully implemented soon. Number of post offices in Jaffna don’t have buildings. People in Jaffna have to trek miles to obtain postal facilities. In Jaffna allocation of telephones is beset with corruption.

Continued tomorrow