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Global union group backs Israel unions protesting to protect public broadcasting
Aidan White
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is backing protest demonstrations in support of the Israeli Broadcasting Authority (IBA) led by the Jerusalem Journalists Association, a group within the National Federation of Israeli Journalists, which is an IFJ affiliate.
“Journalists and other media staff are angry that their working rights are being threatened as well as the rights of Israeli citizens to an independent public broadcaster,” Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary said in an IFJ media release supporting his Israeli colleagues.
“We fully support our Israeli colleagues because Israel, like any other vibrant and democratic society, needs public service broadcasting, free of political and commercial interference.
” It is particularly important for a broadcaster that addresses a fragmented audience representing different languages and communities inside and outside the country.”
The IBA faces closure following difficult relations between staff and management. The crisis at the IBA in recent weeks had prevented satellite broadcasts and telephone interviews outside the studios.
The broadcaster’s problems are compounded by tense relations between the IBA and the Finance Ministry and other parts of government that consider that public broadcasting is no longer necessary in the country.
“A public broadcaster is a must if we want to touch and investigate serious issues without political or commercial interference” said the newly-elected Chairman of the Jerusalem Journalists’ Association Dany Zaken.
A broad coalition of supporters of the IBA, from the media, art, politics and civil society movement, recently held a demonstration outside Beit Sokolov in Tel Aviv to protest against the threats of closure of the IBA.
Another demonstration was held in Jerusalem in front of the Knesset, with leading parliament members from all parts of the political map coming out to join and show support.
Also the Israeli President Shimon Peres spoke with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz and Ofer Eini, the head of the Histadrut labor federation in order to find a way of the crisis of public broadcasting in Israel.
The Jerusalem Post reported that the journalist union leader, Danny Zaken, has called on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to put professional considerations above politics in selecting the people who will be responsible for the implementation of the Broadcasting Authority Law and for getting the long dragged-out reforms underway.
In an open letter to members of the journalists’ union , in which he also addresses the prime minister, Zaken writes that it is time to correct the mistakes of the past and to appoint a good minister who will assist in the selection of a professionally experienced and qualified chairman, and not a politruk.
Zaken also stresses that the prime minister must give his backing to the finalization of negotiations between the Finance Ministry, the workers’ representatives and the Histadrut.
In this context, Zaken also addresses himself to Histadrut chairman Ofer Eini, charging him the responsibility of ensuring that the various channels of the Israel Broadcasting Authority begin to operate as they should.