WASHINGTON: One day after the Taliban banned Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts from terrestrial TV, the US government- funded news agency on Tuesday launched a24/7 direct-to- home satellite- delivered TV channel for Afghanistan.
In an earlier statement, the US State Department prompted Afghanistan’s Taliban autocrats to allow intelligencers and mortal rights protectors to operate freely and without fear.
The VOA blazoned that the new channel would carry “ uncensored news and information” in both the Pashto and Dari languages of the country.
On March 27, the Taliban ordered VOA- combined Afghan TV stations to stop showing VOA programmes, as part of a broad ban on content regarded as undermining Taliban programs, including proscribing women from anchoring newscasts with men.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Deutsche Welle also reported that their original broadcasting mates have been averted from raising their programming in Afghanistan due to new guidelines from the Taliban.
Condemning the order, the State Department said “ It’s with alarm and deep concern we learned of the Taliban’s decision to stifle the Afghan people’s access to independent, objective, transnational media sources.”
The VOA said its new Television sluice, linked as “ VOA Afghanistan,” is on the Yahsat Y-1A satellite (52.2 degrees East), Transponder 12 (downlink frequence11.938 GHz), Channel 469. The Yahsat satellite is Afghanistan’s most popular platform, icing the Afghan followership will have access to VOA’s programming despite the Taliban suppression.
“ Afghanistan is now one of the most cathartic media requests in the world,” said Acting VOA Director Yolanda López. “ Despite the Taliban’s attempt to end press freedom, VOA News stands by its Afghan followership with believable and authoritative news and information.”
The new VOA Afghanistan satellite sluice includes its popular “ Television Ashna” newscasts, its women’s show “ Etesal,” bystander call-in programming, and programming from Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty’s Azadi radio. Fresh programming is planned, including entertainment shows to fill a void in Afghanistan, where original channels can not state music programmes.
The VOA satellite channel has been in development since August, before the fall of Afghanistan’s tagged government. The channel is also accessible on YouTube and on VOA’s Pashto and Dari language websites.
The State Department described the Taliban media guidelines as “ restrictive, and unpublished,” reminding Kabul’s new autocrats that Washington remained married to supporting the right of freedom of expression the world over.
The United States, the department said, was particularly interested in icing that intelligencers and mortal rights protectors were allowed to “ operate freely without fear of violence against them.”
The State Department noted the Taliban had continued to move Afghanistan in the wrong direction since they took Kabul and lately, they failed to uphold commitments they had made to allow women and girls to seek education. On March 23, the Taliban decided to help girls from attending secondary academy.
“ Each of these conduct alone is intimidating, but combined, they make clear the Taliban aren’t living up to the essential commitments they made to the Afghan people and the transnational community,” the department said.
