Chisinau authorities break deadline for submitting decision on reorganizing local TV and radio stations

Chisinau authorities failed to conform to the legal term for presenting a decision on reorganization of “Antena C” radio station and “Euro TV Chisinau”. According to the Audiovisual Code (AC), the decision had to be presented until November 18, 2006. Corneliu Mihalache, chairman of the Audiovisual Coordinating Council (ACC) told Info-Prim Neo that indeed the deadline was broken, but he says this is an extraordinary situation because the Audiovisual Code is a new law, and there was no central authority regulating the field. Mihalache said that he requested the municipal authorities to present information in this respect and that their answer will be available by the end of the week. At the same time, he mentioned that the article 68(5) from AC stipulates that ACC will elaborate within 2 months recommendations as regards the mechanisms of local broadcasters’ legalization, in order to avoid their liquidation and to frame a pluralist development environment. Mihalache said that a work group to draft recommendations is to be created, following his meeting wit the managers of those 2 stations,. Director of “Antena C”, Vasile State told Info-Prim Neo that he is not familiar with the existence of a decision on the reorganization of the 2 institutions whatsoever. He admitted that he participated in a meeting of ACC, where he was ensured that the stations will be kept. The statute of the future institutions will be decided in the Thursday meeting, on November 23. Ghenadie Gruscenco, head of the Legal Department of CMC said that he is not informed about the existence of such a decision. According to him, the leadership of the City Hall is familiar with the provisions of AC, as they were available to the City Hall back in August. “If the interim mayor will give orders, the projects will be immediately prepared”, the cited source declared. The Audiovisual Code passed the final reading on July 27 and came into force on August 18, 2006. The fact that the Code does not stipulate the activity of the local public broadcasting institutions was criticized both by the MPs and the representatives of the civil society, who declared that this is an attempt of the government to monopolize the field. In late April, vice-speaker of the Parliament Iurie Rosca, and president of the People’s Christian Democrat Party declared at an international conference that the municipal stations “Antena C” and “Euro TV Chisinau” will be privatized, after the Audiovisual Code comes into force. As concerns the possibility of closing down the municipal stations “Antena C” and “Euro TV Chisinau”, interim mayor Vasile Ursu has recently declared that the law allows local authorities to own media bodies, thus he does not believe they will be disbanded.