Broad discussions necessary before passing media bill: Bar Council

Bar Council has stated that amendments are necessary to the Media Bill passed by Parliament's Committee on Independent Institutions. 

In a post shared on X, Bar Council announced that they had submitted comments to the bill to parliament.

In line with the Legal Reform and Research Commission (LRRC)'s proposals, the Bar Council also said that in their opinion, the bill needs major amendments to be brought in line with the Constitution and international best practices. 

The Bar Council appealed to the parliament to allow adequate time to hold stakeholder discussions and seek public opinion before passing the bill. 

Journalists continue to stage protests against the bill as it moves to alarmingly narrow press freedom. In response to this, the Attorney General submitted proposed amendments to the bill. 

The Attorney General's recommendations include removing the clause in the bill which allows fines to be levied against individual journalists and media personnel. 

The committee held the meeting discussing the AG's recommendations closed. Hence, it is unclear which of his recommendations were incorporated in to the bill. 

The bill was passed by the committee yesterday through unanimous votes from PNC MPs in the midst of protests from journalists in attendance.