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Afghanistan bans terror reporting during election

19 August 2009 09:21 (UTC +04:00)

Baku -APA. Afghanistan ordered Western and domestic media on Tuesday to impose a blackout on coverage of violence during Thursday’s presidential election, saying it did not want Afghans to be frightened away from the polls.
Taliban militants have vowed to disrupt the election and authorities fear reports of violence on election day could hurt turnout and damage the chances of staging a successful vote.
Two decrees were issued, one from the Foreign Ministry banning all broadcasts of information about violence while polls were open, and the other from the Interior Ministry requiring reporters to keep away from the scene of any attacks.
A suicide car bomber killed eight people and wounded more than 50 in Kabul on Tuesday, one of a string of attacks countrywide. Dozens of journalists were on the scene within minutes of the blast.
The Head of the Afghan Independent Journalists’ Association (AIJA) said the decrees would not stop Afghan and foreign journalists from providing information to the public during the crucial election period. Source: Reuters