Reporters Without Borders (RSF) supports the ongoing protest by 30 independent Afghan media against the country's government, which according to them, has failed to ensure free access to state information, the RSF said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th February, 2020) Reporters Without Borders (RSF) supports the ongoing protest by 30 independent Afghan media against the country's government, which according to them, has failed to ensure free access to state information, the RSF said on Tuesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Afghan TOLOnews broadcaster published a joint statement from the 30 media outlets, which raised concerns about "the deterioration in access| to government-related information in Afghanistan.
"Reporters Without Borders supports a protest by 30 Afghan media outlets about the government's failure to apply the law on access to state-held information, which was drafted with RSF's help. The Afghan authorities must fully implement this law," the group said.
According to the Afghan media statement, when media outlets request access to information, they face certain restrictions as the government adheres to double standards in implementing the law and supporting a free press. Despite the fact that Afghanistan is one of the most dangerous places for journalists, Afghan media remain one of the freest in the world. However, the government's negligence has jeopardized this hard-won achievement, the statement added.
The Afghan outlets that issued the statement include, among others, four privately-owned national tv channels; the 8 Sobh, Etilaatroz and Mandegar newspapers; the Killde and Salam Watandar radio stations; the Hewad TV, Radio Azad and Asr TV local broadcasters.
RSF put Afghanistan in the 121st place out of 180 in its 2019 World Press Freedom Index.
