Government crackdown on broadcast media continues

Popularly known as South Asia's first community radio station, Radio Sagarmatha has come under immense pressure from the Nepali government not to re-broadcast news from the BBC Nepali Service, following a BBC interview with Maoist rebels. On Sunday, government-armed security personnel raided the station in the Pulchok area of the capital, Kathmandu, seized radio equipment and arrested four workers, including journalists and technicians, after the station aired a BBC interview with Maoist chief, Prachanda. Those arrested were released the next day. The Ministry of Information and Communication has ordered the station to stop all transmissions until further notice, quoting the National Broadcast Act which bans the airing of any news that encourages terrorism. However, the station resumed its services on Tuesday after the Supreme Court ordered the government to allow Radio Sagarmatha to continue its work until a final court hearing on 7 December. But Ghamaraj Luitel from the station said the staff were under great pressure not to carry any more news from the BBC. This is the second time in a month that the government has cracked down on private radio stations. Another popular station, Kantipur FM, was raided by the government following the introduction of a new media ordinance. Radio is one of most powerful mediums of information sharing in a country with high rates of illiteracy. Meanwhile, the government has still blocked the BBC's Nepali website where a full transcript of the interview with the Maoist leader has been published. Nepal's media have been subject to strict censorship and government restrictions since 1 February when King Gyanendra assumed direct rule of the Himalayan kingdom. Since then, many journalists have been arrested and several newspapers closed down.