State of the media in Southern Africa - 2004 Malawi By Costly Ronalds Mtogolo Mtogolo is a Lecturer in Journalism at the Malawi Polytechnic Introduction The year 2004 in the Malawi media was euphoric, marked by a shift in political monopoly from government to opposition, the reaffirmation of Constitutional guarantees and a general thawing in the relationship between media and government. Overall the media sector in Malawi posted quantitative and qualitative growth alongside a commitment by the government to open up the airwaves to the opposition and a willingness to offer free access to information. Political Environment The general political environment was charged due to the need for Constitutional amendments by the United Democratic Front (UDF) party to allow its incumbent president, Bakili Muluzi, to stand for a third term. The attempt divided the country into proponents and opponents of the Constitutional violation and the media was caught up in the fray. In the absence of major amendment, government used the Preservation of Public Security as a deterrence to media freedom. One example was the closure of the Malawi Institute of Journalism (MIJ) 90.3FM Radio in May 2004. The matter is in court pending Judicial Preview - the highest level to which cases of media freedom violations can be taken. Broadcasting The most notable development was the licensing by the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) of the public broadcasters, the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) and Television Malawi (TVM). The licensees were seen as the new (President Bingu’s) administration’s commitment to treat all broadcasting licenses as equal and as a real warranty of MACRA’s independence - the first in its eight-year existence. Hitherto, the MACRA was dubbed ‘toothless’ and ‘state-controlled’ for failing to license MBC and TVM. It was accused of double standards which allowed the two to be above the law and answerable to no one. Looking at other African democracies, it seems sadly unlikely - this is the general public’s view - that the christening of these new “babies” will really redeem Malawian media. Meanwhile the Authority, operating without a broadcasting policy, undertook to revise the licenses of private and community broadcasters. Fourteen broadcasting licensees are currently operating in Malawi. Eight of these are in the community broadcast category. The biggest worry is that the authority is using the opportunity to make changes before amending the Principal Act. Is this another window-dressing measure, or a case of putting the proverbial media cart before the legal horse? Print Table 1 ORGANISATION Blantyre News Paper (Blantyre) PUBLICATION Daily Times, Malawi News, Sunday Times Dzukani Magazine Nation, Weekend Nation The Chronicle Democratus Nation Publications Limited (Blantyre) Jamieson Publication (Lilongwe) Democratus Limited So This Is Democracy? 2004 59 Media Institute of Southern Africa