New media regulations?

PHILIPSBURG, ST. Marteen, Aug 27, CMC – The Trinidad-based Association of Caribbean Mediaworkers Association (ACM) Tuesday said it was formulating a response to a call by a senior government minister for a new policy that could prevent some journalists from being accredited in St. Maarten.

ACM president Wesley Gibbings told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that the response was being developed in cooperation with the Vienna-based International Press Institute (IPI).

Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure Minister, Maurice Lake, in a statement to the Island Council (Parliament) denounced a recent article published on an online website about the government as “irresponsible reporting or yellow journalism”.

He told legislators that the August 22 article could have “devastating effects on our country’s image, but more so, on the people of this country.

“Therefore, as a Council we need to look at what measures can be taken for the media in general where it concerns responsible journalism, media credentials with the end result of weeding out those that can’t meet the criteria.”

Lake said while he did not want it to look as though the government was moving to stifle freedom of speech on the island, he nonetheless foresees a “phased media accreditation policy being developed whereby some immediate steps can be taken while other steps over a phased period” are implemented.