PRESS RELEASE
IMC PRESENTS VALIDATED MEDIA CODE OF PRACTICE TO THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS
The Independent Media Commission (IMC) on Wednesday 15th December 2021 presented the validated Media Code of Practice for Print and Electronic Media to the Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, at the Ministry’s Conference Hall, 8th Floor, Youyi Building, Freetown.
In a meeting attended by cross section of Commissioners and staff of the IMC and the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Executive Secretary, Khalil Kallon, gave an overview of the processes involved in the drafting of the document. He said the validated document came about as a result of the need to have a Media Code of Practice that will stand the test of time following the repeal of Part V of the Public Order Act, 1965, and the enactment of the IMC Act 2020. He informed the minister that the draft document is an outcome of series of consultations and validations involving media practitioners, civil society organizations and other stakeholders from across all sixteen districts in Sierra Leone.
Taking the Minister through the draft document, the lead facilitator, Dr. Francis Sowa, informed the Minister that unlike the Media Code of Practice 2007, which comprises five areas, including Advertising, the validated Media Code of Practice is limited to the print and electronic media. He said the new additions were mostly on definitions of certain terms and codes on character assassination, invasion of privacy, threats, abuse and indecency.
The Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, registered his profound appreciation to the Commission for the draft Code which had addressed gaps in the current Code. He noted that he is aware of the fact that a lot of efforts have been put together in drafting the document; noting that he was going to the take his time to read through the document and take the necessary actions. Minister Rahman Swaray lauded the efforts of IMC, the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), the Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) and other stakeholders for putting together such a sensitive document, and the BBC Media Action PRIMED Project for the financial support.
The meeting was climaxed by the presentation of the document to the Minister by the Executive Secretary of the Independent Media Commission, Khalil Kallon.
