on provisions contained in the National Access to Information Policy which government adopted in January 2014. So the concerns of government appear to be in contradiction of the principles it promoted prior to elections. Although Cabinet rejected the Bill, MISA Malawi and different stakeholders believe that ATI has been irreversibly placed as a crucial development agenda item not just for the DPP administration but all subsequent administrations to come. Chances are high that the Bill will be tabled in Parliament in 2016 and Malawi will join an enviable list of countries with legislation on ATI. MISA Malawi has currently teamed up with a cross section of stakeholders to push the DPP administration to walk the talk on ATI. The Chapter is also engaging chiefs and people at the grassroots level to start demanding information as a right and engage their Members of Parliament (MPs) to support the Bill once tabbed in Parliament. JOURNALIST SAFETY President Mutharika verbally attacks the media The media operating environment in 2015 remained risky, exploitative and showed serious signs of backsliding. Media houses and journalists deemed critical of the ruling administration were denied access to presidential functions and openly castigated for ‘being pro-opposition.’ Information officers in some government departments were ordered to ‘stop talking to the media’ and some mainstream media practitioners were threatened with arrests for carrying stories critical of the elite. During a press conference held at Kamuzu Palace in the capital Lilongwe On October 8, 2015, President Arthur Peter 38 So This is Democracy? 2015 Mutharika lambasted and labelled the media ‘liars, irresponsible and agents of the opposition’. President Mutharika’s outbursts followed a string of articles and news bulletins criticising the size of the President’s entourage, hiring of a private jet and the level of expenditure incurred during his trip to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. The President asked for an apology from some media houses over these stories and fell short of specifying what action he would take should the apologies not come forward. Mutharika’s Press Secretary, Gerald Viola, joined the fray and attacked one unspecified radio station, accusing it of having a hidden agenda against the DPP government. A few weeks after this development, MISA Malawi received reports that Zodiak Broadcasting Station (ZBS), one of Malawi’s renowned national radio stations in the country, was being sidelined and denied access to some Presidential functions. Such developments clearly demonstrated that government was being intolerant of CSOs and media outlets critical of the ruling DPP led administration. All in all, however, the year in question saw the media and selected CSOs fiercely defend their spaces of freedom by strategic networking with both domestic and international advocates. BROADCASTING The shortlived evolution of the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation Developments in the broadcasting sector during the period under review also show that Malawi takes a step forward and a step backwards.