The BBC's refusal to air a humanitarian appeal for Gaza
jhaaglund | 24.01.2009 14:10 | Anti-militarism | Other Press | Palestine
The BBC has blocked the broadcast of an appeal by the Disasters Emergency Committee (an alliance of apolitical humanitarian charities) calling for donations to relieve the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused by Israeli air strikes and blockades.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7848614.stm This decision by the BBC is not the act of an impartial organisation, but a cowardly decision by director general Mark Thompson, motivated by fears that the Israeli government will bar BBC journalists from press conferences, as they did in 2003[1]. The existence of an ongoing conflict did not, after all, prevent the BBC from broadcasting similar DEC appeals in the past:
Gulf Crisis (1990)
Former Yugoslavia (1994)
Rwanda (1994)
Sudan (1998)
Kosovo (1999)
Liberia (2003)
Sudan - Darfur (2004)
Darfur & Chad (2007)
Those who can't attend the planned demonstration at the BBC Broadcasting House in London on the 24th of January at 2pm can also take part by:
*Loding a complaint with the BBC, this can be done via their website[2] or by telephone on 03700 100 222.
*Stopping your TV licence payments and donate the money to the DEC instead[3]
[1]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2003/nov/11/bbc.television [2]
http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/complaints_stage1.shtml [3]
http://www.dec.org.uk/
jhaaglund
Homepage:
http://www.af-north.org/
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