Govt urged to enact law for broadcast

They said the proposed law should be enacted on the basis of the existing draft.

The roundtable on 'Community Radio' was organised jointly by Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communications (BCNNRC), Voices for Interactive Choice and Empowerment (Voice), Mass-Line Media Centre (MMC), Focus and Young Power in Social Action (YPSA) in association with UNESCO, UNDP and UNICEF at LGED conference room at Agargaon in the city.

Ahmed Swapan Mahmud, executive director of the Voice, presented a keynote paper titled 'The Role of Community Radio is the Central to Development' at the roundtable.

He said CR can help build up participatory practice in the society leading to people's governance.

It can also facilitate people's access and promote their participation in local level decision making-process which ultimately results for participatory governance in the society, he added.

Former chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Syed Margub Morshed said frequency has been allocated for CR and there is no policy barrier against it.

Now only a law is needed to issue licence for CR, he said.

Kamrul Hasan Monju, chairperson of the Steering Committee of National Consultation on CR and Executive Director of Mass-line Media Centre, said CR can play its role as promoter of participatory, accountable and transparent government system in the country.

The speakers said through CR, the community people can exercise and participate in the development process.

The roundtable was informed that a high-level advocacy group would be formed soon to influence the government in favour of the community radio.

Columnist Muhammad Jahangir, Executive Director of Democracy Watch Teleya Rehman, President of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists Gias Kamal Chowdhury, Columnist Sadek Khan and representative of different NGOs and UN organisations also took part in the discussion.

Dr Mizanur Rahman Shelly, president of Bangladesh Centre of Development Research (BCDR), was the chief gust at the roundtable moderated and chaired by Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman, of the Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC).