Media Freedom

Tongan publisher says media freedom at a low

Kalafi Moala says the media environment in Tonga is at a low.

He said the current government was trying to control channels of public information.

Mr Moala gave the move of senior journalists out of the state broadcaster's newsroom as just one example of this.

He said the government also responded to criticism or probing questions by making statements to ridicule the media.

Last week Tonga dropped two places to 51 in the Reporters without Borders freedom rankings.

Mr Moala said it was not an accurate reflection of the country.

Time for reset on Tonga media - PFF

That's the call from regional media watchdog Pacific Freedom Forum (PFF) as months of controversy continue at Tonga's public broadcaster, the Tonga Broadcasting Commission.

“Government needs to stop using so-called losses as an excuse to apply punitive changes aimed at gagging newsroom and management in a leading public broadcaster of the region”, says PFF Chair Monica Miller.

“Informing the public about what is happening with their own tax dollars is a key role of state broadcasters, who are not faced by the profit-margin pressures of commercial broadcasters.

TBC case not about media freedom - chairman

'Ahongalu Fushimalohi was appointed chair of the Tonga Broadcasting Commission last month after the former chair, Tapu Panuve was forced to resign, and shortly afterwards Ms Fifita was sacked.

RNZI reports the moves came after the prime minister 'Akilsi Pohiva had expressed concern at what he saw as a lack of support from the TBC, calling them an 'enemy of government'.

Regional media groups were outraged believing the Mr Pohiva was infringing on media independence.

Culture of fear exists in Tonga media - publisher

'Akilisi Pohiva has forced the state broadcaster's chair Tapu Panuve to resign, is looking to replace the general manager Nanise Fifita and has not ruled out other changes.

Mr Moala said he had a special media panel organised to mark World Press Freedom Day on Wednesday but no one turned up.

"It's affecting press freedom, its bringing a culture of fear upon other journalists and media organizations and it is really bad that here we are commemorating World Press Freedom day and we are having some huge problems here in Tonga."

Democracies risk 'losing souls' as media freedom erodes

"In sickening statements, draconian laws, conflicts of interest, and even the use of physical violence, democratic governments are trampling on a freedom that should, in principle, be one of their leading performance indicators," said the group, also known by its French acronym, RSF (Reporters Sans Frontières).

Jokowi urged to honor promise to free up media access to West Papua

Tabloid Jubi reported this call came after the expulsion of French journalists Franck Escudie and Basile Longchamp on visa violations last month.

RSF's Benjamin Ismail said the Indonesian president had undertaken to scrap the restrictions that obstruct the work of foreign journalists in West Papua.

But he said Jakarta's repeated refusals to issue press visas and the growing number of journalists on its blacklist, shows it falls far short of qualifying as a country that supports freedom of expression and media freedom.

West Papua media access still fettered - PFF

Indonesia opened access to West Papua for foreign journalists in 2015, more than 50 years after annexing the territory from the Netherlands.

The Forum's co-chair, the Papua New Guinean journalist, Alex Rheeney, said a visit by journalists to West Papua in January encountered violence, sexual harassment and interference from Indonesian minders.

PINA says Tonga govt should remember what they fought for

Viola Ulakai said the Prime Minister 'Akilisi Pohiva recommended her suspension to his Minister of Public Enterprises which led to a letter to the Tonga Broadcasting Commission.

According to RNZI, the prime minister previously said Mrs Ulakai misrepresented herself when making a request for a press conference and suggested she was acting as a mouthpiece for political opponents.