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By Ralph SeeramFreedom of the press, and the right to free speech are considered cornerstones of a true democratic society, especially so in the Western societies. However in those very societies those freedoms are limited.There is no such thing as unlimited free speech or unlimited freedom of the press. Here in the United States radio and televisions are constantly being fined by the FCC  for breaching their licenses, and while there are provisions for suspending licenses, infractions are generally dealt with hefty fines.As much as the United States boasts about free speech and a free press, censorship does exist. Radio and television stations have a list of words they do not use, and I am not talking about indecent language here. In the area of race relations the media tread very carefully to avoid running afoul with the Federal Communications Commission.I have been reading with deep interest and concern the outcry over the suspension of the licence of CNS TV 6 owned by C N Sharma. Naturally it was one more opportunity for the combined opposition to hammer the PPP Government.Even the international press watchdog ‘Reporters Without Borders’ jumped in the fray with this statement,Cheap MLB Jerseys China, “trying to use legislation to impose criteria about good programme content and news coverage is unfortunately the surest way to obstruct the media”.I don’t know which borders they have been going to. As far as I know all democracies have imposed criteria in which the media can operate. They went on to say “nothing permits President Jagdeo to use these comments as grounds for imposing censorship”. Reporters without Borders seemed confused here. Either they have not checked the laws of Guyana that give the President his powers, or examined the issue in detail before making their statement.Their contention is that the matter should be settled in court between Sharma,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, Anthony Vieira and the aggrieved party, Bishop Juan Edghill. That is only one aspect of the case. There are also provisions for administrative review of the incident.We need to examine the matter in detail. From the evidence this is not the first or second offence for CNS TV 6. The questions should be what sanctions should be levied against him for breaching the terms of his licence?He admitted that he breached his licence, suggested a two month suspension (I don’t think he had much choice). This is the aspect the opposition has chosen to ignore. What should be the penalty for a repeat offender,Wholesale Jerseys, what would be a fair and just?According to the President, “The content was intended to incite religious intolerance and disparage religious values in this country, which is reprehensible to our Constitution,Wholesale Jerseys From China, the Laws and, more particularly the license”.One must remember that CNS TV 6 was sanctioned before for broadcasting threats against the President.The opposition has cried “foul” because the suspension would deprive them of an outlet to share their views for the upcoming elections. In fact, some see it as a denial of fair and free elections. That might be a little stretch. I hate to break this to the opposition parties,cheap nfl jerseys online, the elections are not going to be won on television outlets, its going to be won by rallies like the one they held at Stabroek Market Square.Forget about media outlets; get in the ‘trenches’ the streets, villages the countryside, run an ‘old time style campaign’ to get your message. They are not going to hear anything new on television that you have not said before. Television advertisements help win elections in the United States. The current governor of Florida spent over 70 million dollars of his personal money mainly on ads,Cheap NFL Jerseys co, and he barely won the governorship by a very small percentage.Guyanese voting pattern is very different. I wrote extensively before on how the PPP can lose the elections. I suggest the opposition look it up.The PPP is going to ensure that it has international observers to dispel any doubt that the elections are free and fair. Whether the run up to the elections is fair and free is another matter. The word fair does not exist in political battles. Both the opposition and government know this.President Jagdeo threw a diversion to the opposition and they fell for it. Instead of campaigning, they are worried about Sharma’s licence. If the opposition gets too aggressive in the streets they will play in the hands of the PPP; it will wake up those PPP supporters who may have wanted to sit this one out.My suggestion to the opposition is not to waste your energies on this issue; it might sound good beating up on Jagdeo who by the way is not running for reelection. So how is that helping your campaign?While the opposition is worried about Sharma’s licence the PPP election machine is in full swing in the ‘trenches’.Coming back to the issue of the suspension of CNS TV6 licence, the questions remain. What is a justifiable punishment? My view is four months is a little too harsh considering that the station is a business enterprise that has employees. Maybe the President could have imposed a one-month suspension (since this is its third offence) together with a hefty fine (if there are provisions for it).That way the station could remain viable to pay the fine while the employees could collect their paychecks. One of the main accusations against the President is that he timed it to put the station off the air during elections. I am inclined to believe that argument. President Jagdeo can dispel this accusation by ensuring that the opposition parties get equal time in the government-controlled media.In fact, it is the decent thing to do, but remember what I said earlier there is nothing fair or honest in politics.Ralph Seeram can be reached at email: [email protected]