Journalists working in Mozambique are scheduled to start paying what may be the highest registration fees ever imposed on media practitioners anywhere in the world as from Friday (today).
The new fees have been widely criticized, with Human Rights Watch calling them “outrageous,” and Amnesty International insisting they will keep the media from reporting on Mozambique.
For instance, a foreign correspondent living in the southern African country would have to pay $8,300 a year, and a new national radio station would be charged $35,000. Local journalists reporting for foreign media would be charged $3,500 for annual accreditation in a country whose gross domestic product, per capita, is $1,200.
Referring to the development, Arnaud Froger, who heads the Africa desk for the watchdog group, Reporters Without Borders, said, “We think that this is completely exorbitant and out of any reasonable proportion”.
Mr. Froger believes that the measure is calculated against the big media outlets with very high license fees as well as private radio and TV channels in Mozambique.
Although the authorities are yet to give formal reasons for the measure but it is widely believed that there are heavy political undertones behind the move. As Mr. Froger suggested political opponents of the ruling party have pointed out that the government wants to reduce the volume of light thrown on Mozambique from outside the country.
Last Wednesday, at a forum in Maputo, opposition leaders described the impending measure as autocratic. But the government replied by casually stating that the country has no choice but to react to current economic situation in the world.
