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IFEX- News from the international freedom of expression community
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PRESS RELEASE/ALERT - BRAZIL

30 January 1998

Community radio is approved in Brazil with restrictive legislation

SOURCE: World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), Montreal

** Complete Portuguese text of AMARC-Brazil press release is appended.
Version completa del boletin de prensa de AMARC-Brasil a continuacion.
Versao completa do boletim de prensa da AMARC/Brasil a continuacao**

(AMARC/IFEX) - On 27 January 1998, the Education Commission of the Brazilian
Senate approved, without ammendments, the bill which will regulate community
radio stations. The text was approved in the same form it arrived from the
House of Congress. If it is maintained without any modifications in the
plenary, it will be sent rapidly for presidential approval. According to the
bill, all community radio stations will have a capacity of 25 watts
modulated frequecy. Licences will only be given to foundations or non-profit
associations.

The Union of Broadcasting Networks for Democracy, UNIRR/AMARC-Brazil, has
been denouncing the proposed legislation for over a year, arguing that it
creates serious restrictions on the activities of community radio stations
including:
- prohibiting advertising, referring only to sponsorships in the form of
cultural support
-establishing one frequency for each region, without a clear definition of
the concept of a "region"
-limiting the power of the transmitters to 25 watts
-prohibiting under any circumstances the formation of broadcast networks
-requiring that a station's directors be residents of the community where
the transmitter is located

All indications are that there will be no attempts to alter the text of the
law in the plenary and that it will receive the approval of President
Fernando Cardoso in the next few weeks.

AMARC-Brazil points out that several serious questions arise out of this new
situation. One is the question of the status of the stations that received
favorable legal decisions in the past from judges who, in the majority of
cases, ruled that the exercise of community broadcasting is a legal right -
one that was, until now, unregulated. AMARC-Brazil is concerned about what
guarantees  there are that these stations will receive the new licences?  It
is also concerned about what will happen in the cases where there are
several community stations in the same place, if only one frequency is
permitted per region.


For further information, contact Bruce Girard, AMARC, Avenida Atahualpa 333,
Casilla 17-08- 8489, Quito, Ecuador, tel: +593 2 501180/551674, telefax:
+593 2 542818 or 226648 or via Montreal at faxL +514 221 2009, e-mail:
bgirard@pulsar.org.ec, Internet: http://www.amarc.org/pulsar.html. Or,
contact AMARC at 3575 St-Laurent, Suite 611, Montreal, Quebec H2X 2T7
Canada, tel: +1 514 982 0351, fax: +1 514 849 7129, e-mail: amarc@web.net,
Internet: http://www.amarc.org.

AMARC-Brazil can be contacted at Rua Francisco Serrador, 90/602 Cinelandia,
Rio de Janeiro CEP 20031-060 - Fone/Fax: (55-021) 240-6542
E.Mail: unirr@ax.ibase.org.br

The information contained in this press release/alert is the sole
responsibility of AMARC. In citing this material for broadcast or
publication, please credit AMARC.
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COMUNICADO DE PRENSA - BRASIL

RADIOS COMUNITARIAS SAO APROVADAS NO BRASIL
COM PROJETO RESTRITIVO

A comissao de Educacao do Senando brasileiro, aprovou hoje, sem
emendas, o projeto que regulamenta as radios comunitarias. O texto
foi aprovado da forma como veio da Camara, e se for mantido sem
modificacoes no plenario sera enviado rapidamente a sancao
presidencial. Pelo projeto, cada emissora de radio tera a potencia
maxima de 25 Watts em frequencia modulada. A concessao sera dada
apenas a fundacoes ou associacoes sem fins lucrativos. Como a UNIRR/
AMARC-Brasil ja vem denunciando a mais de um ano, o projeto cria
graves restricoes a atividade dos radiodifusores comunitarios:
1. proibe a veiculacao de publicidade (fala apenas em patrocinio na forma
de apoio cultural);
2. estabelece uma frequencia para cada regiao (sem deixar claro o conceito
de regiao);
3. limita a potencia dos transmissores a 25 w;
4. proibe, sob qualquer circunstancia, a formacao de redes e
5. obriga os dirigentes da emissora a serem moradores na comunidade
aonde esta localizado o transmissor.

Ao que tudo indica, nao havera nenhuma tentativa de alteracao do
texto no plen½rio e o projeto devera receber a assinatura do Presidente
da Republica, Fernando Henrique Cardosos, nas proximas semanas.

Um outro desafio que surge a partir deste momento para as Radios
comunitarias  brasileiras e o seguinte: como ficam as situacoes das
emissoras comunitarias que conseguiram medidas judiciais favoraveis se os
juizes deferiram em favor das nossas radios, na maioria dos casos,  por
considerarem o execício da radiodifusao comunitaria um direito legitimo,
porem ate entao nao regulamentado? Quem pode garantir que essas
emissoras serao recebedoras das novas autorgas? E como ficam as
situacoes de emissoras diferentes, com propostas comunitarias, de um
mesmo lugar, se o projeto preve apenas uma frequencia por regiao?

Sao bons temas para refletir e agir.

Sempre querendo e lutando por uma boa sintonia,

Marcus AurÊlio de Carvalho
ValÊria MendonÄa
Pela CoordenaÄao UNIRR/AMRC-Brasil

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UNIRR - Uniao de Redes de Radiodifusao pela Democracia
AMARC- Brasil
Rua Francisco Serrador, 90/602- Cinel�ndia - Rio de Janeiro/RJ
CEP:20031-060 - Fone/Fax: (55-021) 240-6542
E.Mail: unirr@ax.ibase.org.br

NAO QUEREMOS MEIOS, QUEREMOS INTEIROS
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___________________________________________________
Bruce Girard Boa         Agencia Informativa Pulsar
Email: bgirard@pulsar.org.ec
http://www.comunica.org/pulsar
Fono/Fax: +593-2-501 180 o 551 674
Fax en Montreal, Canada: +1-514-221-2009
Av. Atahualpa 333, Casilla 17-08-8489, Quito, Ecuador