The offices of private radios Shamla and Dehkada in Ghazni city were sealed on Sunday, March 10, for failing to obtain a work permit from the municipality.
March 14, 2024
Ghazni, Ghazni province- The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) expresses deep concern over the recent events in Ghazni, Ghazni province, where the municipality has forced the closure of two local radio stations, Shamla and Dehkada. Despite being properly registered and licensed, the stations were shut down for not paying the municipality's demanded "license fee." They were only allowed to reopen after obtaining a new local license issued by the municipality, raising serious concerns about the state of media freedom in the province.
The offices of private radios Shamla and Dehkada in Ghazni city were sealed on Sunday, March 10, for failing to obtain a work permit from the municipality. However, following protest from the station managers and local journalists, they were reopened after about three hours with the condition of paying the requested amount for the trade license. This was the second closure of the stations for the same reason in a week.
The Municipal officials claimed they were under pressure from Kabul to enforce the "Municipalities Law" requiring all media outlets to obtain a local license. The requested fee for the license is approximately USD 100.
Currently, five private media are operating in Ghazni, including Shamla, Dehkada, Sama, Khushal and Ghaznavian Radio and TV Network.
The plan to issue local licenses by municipalities was initiated during the Republic government, but it was not put into effect following protests from the media. After the fall of the Republic government on August 15, 2021, and the return of the Taliban to power, hundreds of media outlets were forced to shut down due to escalating work restrictions and economic difficulties. The reduction of commercial advertisements, which serve as their primary source of income, exacerbated the situation.
Media outlets, including those in Ghazni province, have obtained licenses from relevant Taliban’s ministries such as the ministries of information and culture, telecommunications, and industry and trade. They also pay taxes for these licenses. However, the mandatory implementation of a local license plan in Ghazni is a recent development.
AFJC views the introduction of municipal taxes as a further burden on local media outlets already struggling to operate in the current constrained environment. AFJC is concerned about the impact of imposing municipal taxes on local media during these challenging times and urges the Taliban authorities to revoke this directive.