Decency law

add_main_imageThe cabinet has approved amendments to the law on the indecent representation of women to cover Internet and satellite-based TV broadcasting, among other areas. The amendments are also aimed making it easy to crack down on messages that are used to harass and oppress women as they now cover multimedia communications beyond the print and audiovisual media, thus addressing a phenomenon that’s become disturbingly widespread as an instrument of blackmail.

But the nature of the amendments have also got some in the media world, especially in advertising and TV, worried that a law with greater powers could be misused. The subject is more than adequately covered in the Information Technology Act as amended in 2008. This is a natural reaction given recent clumsy attempts to rein in online material that’s considered offensive and incendiary. Hopefully, this latest bid will have a better chance of hitting its mark.NextMAds