SECTOR 2

2.2
Citizens’ access to domestic and international
media sources is not restricted by state authorities.
Officially, no one is barred from accessing information, regardless of its origin.
However, as far as radio is concerned, private radio stations are not allowed to
broadcast to all parts of the country. If they intend to broadcast to each of the
country’s 18 provinces, private radio stations have to obtain an equal number of
licences. Due to this restriction, for example, Rádio Eclésia, which is affiliated
with the Catholic Church, can only be heard in the provinces of Luanda, Kwanza
Sul, Malange and Bié. The government does not even allow the use of repeaters.
This means that in certain areas where there is internet access some people resort
to amplifiers in order to make its broadcastings more widely available to people
in public spaces.
Although there may be no official restrictions on access to various sources of
information, members of the panel noted that some ruling party leaders or senior
civil servants do not feel comfortable with their subordinates listening to radio
stations that might be considered inconvenient to the government. They cited
the example (not confirmed) of civil servants at an unspecified institution, who
were reportedly dismissed for listening to broadcasts of Rádio Despertar, which is
linked to UNITA, the main opposition party.

Scores:
Individual scores:
1

Country does not meet indicator

2

Country meets only a few aspects of indicator

3

Country meets some aspects of indicator

4

Country meets most aspects of indicator

5

Country meets all aspects of the indicator

Average score: 			

3.3

AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ANGOLA 2010

93

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