Skip to content Skip to navigation

JFA urges Tuki for ending Arunachal media deadlock

By Nava Thakuria |

Expressing grave concern over the ceasing of publications of all seven daily newspapers in Arunachal Pradesh for successive second day on Sunday, the Journalists' Forum Assam (JFA) has urged the authority to resolve the matter for the sake of thousands of esteemed readers. The indefinite shutting down of all publication houses in Itanagar, the capital city of frontier State in northeast India, came into force since February 14 in protest against the authority's anti-media ruling.

The journalists based in Itanagar sat together in Arunachal Press Club (APC) on Saturday and decided to continue the movement that involved local newspapers and cable news channels. The meeting under the supervision of Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists (APUWJ) also resolved to send another memorandum to the State chief minister Nabam Tuki.

Earlier both the media bodies took a strong decision on Friday to shut all newspapers down apprehending confrontations between the media persons and the members of Students' Union Movement of Arunachal (SUMA), which staged a demonstration on February 14 against The Arunachal Times, an Itanagar-based morning daily. The conflict began when the capital complex district magistrate Mige Kamki permitted the students' organization to stage the protest programme in front of Arunachal's first English newspaper. The development angered the media fraternity as the authority had virtually bowed down to the pressure of SUMA, which has a background of confrontations with the media.

The APC and APUWJ, had earlier sent a joint representation to the State chief minister's office asking for immediate suspension of the Itanagar capital complex deputy commissioner Mige Kamki for his permission to the SUMA, which had problems with The Arunachal Times from before, to hold the demonstration against the newspaper house. "The deputy commissioner's 'senseless' action of granting permission to the SUMA for the programme against The Arunachal Times could result in confrontation between the media employees and members of the students' body," said the representation, adding that, 'supporting the irrational demand of SUMA to stage demonstrations against a media house', Mige Kamki had signaled that the government was indirectly for curtailing the freedom of press.

However, Mige Kamki claimed through a press statement that he permitted SUMA 'for peaceful rally/dharna at the newly designated dharna/ rally ground near Tennis Court inside IG Park, Itanagar' and not 'staging rally/ dharna outside the Arunachal TimesoOffice on 14th February, 2014'. Denying the allegation against him 'as baseless, unfounded and irresponsible', the deputy commissioner also commented that the indefinite shutdown of all Itanagar based media houses is 'uncalled for and unwarranted'.

Meanwhile, condemning any kind of threats to the media houses in any case, the JFA, in a statement issued by its president Rupam Barua and secretary Nava Thakuria, asserted that the Arunachal Pradesh government should intervene on the matter and resolve the issue amicably such that the people do not get deprived from having their morning newspapers because of the conflict.

On the other hand, the Assam based scribes' body also appealed to the media fraternity of Arunachal Pradesh, which has neither any satellite news channel nor active news portals, to rethink on their decision to shut down the publications indefinitely keeping an eye on the denizens of the mountainous State, bordering Bhutan, Tibet and Burma.

  • 8886 reads

Add new comment

Other Contents by Author

Copenhagen climate summit ends with a deal

The world witnessed for almost two weeks how the negotiations went on during the UN global climate conference in the freezing cold Danish capital. The conference, the biggest in the history of mankind for the cause of environment, witnessed the participation of over 130 heads of government and states from around the globe, where every one initially remarked that the summit must not be failed. But the latest series of negotiation and discussion proved that the division between the developed and developing remained intact. The repeated opposition and adjournment of the meetings delayed the acceptance of the resolutions. The summit, which was supposed to get concluded by Friday night,...

Protest and uncertainties loom large on Copenhagen climate summit

Hectic negotiations among the climate negotiators from different countries, never ending protest and demonstrations carried out by various activists in the freezing cold winter and unbelievable busyness of the environment NGO workers and also the media persons inside and outside the historic Bella Center at the Danish capital remained some important highlights from the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009. With formal negotiation process starting from December 7, the climate summit is going to culminate on December 19 though the probable outcome is yet to get assured as the divide between the developed (western) and developing (eastern) countries continues to hunt the...

Rallyists deplore ultra brutality, Govt inaction in Bhimajuli

A group of journalists, joined by eminent citizens, artists and social activists on Thursday registered their protest against terrorist brutality in Bhimajuli on October 4 and government inaction preceding the fateful night. They took out a rally on the thoroughfares of Guwahati city shouting slogans like “We condemn government inaction,” “Hang the terrorists” and “Stop massacre of children.” The protesters came onto the streets in response to an appeal by 12 journalists who included chairman of Assam Tribune group Tulsi Govinda Baruah, veteran journalists Dhirendra Nath Bezboruah, Dhirendra Nath Chakravorty and littérateur Nirupama Borgohain....

Media Workshop on HIV/AIDS issue

The Assam State AIDS Control Society in association with Guwahati Press Club has organized a media workshop on HIV/AIDS at the press club on September 22. The programme will begin at 10.30 am. The meeting is understood to have deliberations on the highly sensitive issue, where the officials of the State AIDS Control Society will make audio-visual presentations. The interested member-journalists of the press club are requested to contact the secretary, Guwahati Press Club for participation in the programme. Although Manipur has remained a high prevalence state regarding the epidemic, Assam has been able to keep the epidemic at a low prevalence over the years because of the efforts of...

Media Fellowship to study Climate Change, Disaster Risk Reduction

Guwahati Press Club in association with ActionAid (Northeast India regional office) has declared three short term media fellowship for young journalists of the State. The month long fellowship will provide space for the working journalists to study and report about the impact of the climate change in Assam, which is finally expected to draw the attention of the policy makers. Similarly, the other fellowship is expected to make public awareness regarding the natural and man made disasters in the locality. It may be mentioned that Actionaid is an international humanitarian organization, whose primary concern is to reduce the risk related to all kinds of disaster and the impact of the...

Militant diktat defied yet again, people celebrate I-Day

Enough is enough. This exactly appeared to be the message the Guwahatians on Sunday sent to the militants, who issue a diktat on Independence Day eve every year asking people not to celebrate their hard-earned freedom. People came out into the open, hoisted the National Tricolour in numerous localities, saluted it, sang the National Anthem and took part in other related programmes. At Guwahati Press Club, journalists were joined by members of the public on the occasion. Hoisting the National Flag, eminent litterateur Nirupama Borgohain said it had been a motley crowd some years ago, which dared to defy the militants. But now, it’s a different story. The number of people, who join...

Rajdeep Sardesai to deliver Kamala Saikia memorial lecture in Guwahati

Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief of CNN – IBN & IBN 7 will deliver the eighth Kamala Saikia memorial lecture in Guwahati on August 9 (Sunday). The programme will begin at 4 pm in the auditorium of Vivekananda Kendra at Uzan Bazar of the city. Organised by the Journalist Kamala Saikia Memorial Trust in association with Guwahati Press Club, the function will witness the felicitation to two veteran Assamese journalists DN Bezboruah (former editor of The Sentinel) and Radhika Mohan Bhagawati (editor of Dainik Batori). Presently the president of Editors’ Guild of India, Sardesai is an Oxford University passed out and he was honoured with a number of national and international...

Citizens urge Govt to stop arms sales to Burma

A roundtable meeting at Guwahati Press Club on Saturday urged the Government of India to stop forthwith all arms sales to the military rulers of Burma, who use these weapons to suppress the ever-growing movement for democracy in the country. The well-attended meeting, organized by the Burma Centre Delhi and Journalists’ Forum, Assam, also demanded immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners in Burma. In a resolution, the meeting urged New Delhi to review its policy on Burma to facilitate restoration of democracy in the South East Asian country. The speakers were of the opinion that trade relations between India and Burma should not be at the cost of the...

GPC media fellowships announced

Guwahati Press Club has announced a series of media fellowships for the benefit of the journalists of Assam. The fellowship is introduced in the memory of Bir Sing Majhi and has been sponsored by Prithibi Majhi and his family from this year. The first fellowship is offered to study the overall tea economy of the State. The second fellowship will incorporate various socio-economic aspects of the tea plantation labourers within Assam. Both the fellowships will be of four months each and the selected fellow will receive Rs.40,000 each. The remaining two fellowships will be offered to study the potentiality of fish production in Assam and the role of women journalists in the media of the State...

Discussion on Child-Friendly facet of Guwahati

Snehalaya with the support of Guwahati Press Club has organized an interactive session on the issue of children’s safety, comfortability and facilities available in Guwahati. The workshop titled Is Guwahati a Child-Friendly City to be held at the press club auditorium on February 28 (Saturday) at 11 am is likely to witness participation of nearly 50 eminent intellectuals, journalists, NGO functionaries, lawyers, doctors, educators with others.The programme, to be moderated by D.N. Bezboruah, an eminent journalist of Northeast and the former chairman of Editors Guild of India, is expected to create greater awareness among the civil society and the policy makers about the...