Country Report - Kiribati

There are two main papers in Kiribati and both are weekly. The first is the Uekera. This is a government owned paper managed and operated by a Board appointed by a government Minister. lt was started many years ago well befiore our independence in 1979. lt has a circulation of around 1800 most of which are sold in Tarawa, the main urban area at 60 cents Australian per copy. Recently some are beginning to be sold on the outer Islands. It is written in tihe local language although there is a significant content in English.

As a government paper it tends to follow the government line and keeps away from issues that are likely to generate political controversy. The degree the paper does this depends very much on the attitude of the government of the day.

The Kiribati Newstar is the only other commercial paper. It is owned by four people who are concerned by the absence of a free and independent paper in the country. It is written in I- Kiribati but sometimes it carries some stories in English. It has a circulation similar to that of governnent and again the main market: is the urban area. But a lot is being done to sell the paper to people living on outer islands. Since the paper started, it is fair to say that there is now contention between the two papers and we expect that this can only be good for the country in the long term.

In addition to these commercial papers we also have two papers produced by the Catholic Church and the Kinbati Protestant Church. The Catholic paper is a monthly one while the Protestant Church produces a weekly paper. The focus of both is on religious matters but the Protestant Church paper is fast becoming just like the other commercial papers.

In terms of press freedom this is guaranteed by our constitution, but for this to have any meaning a strong free and independent paper must support it. The basic issue in Kiribati now relates to the fact that the government dominates the media scene. In addition to owning one newspaper it also owns the only broadcasting station in the country, which effectively means that government has a strong control on the media

While this is gradually changing with presence of the Newstar it must be recognized that it is a very new paper with some real problems to tackle. Fundamental to these is the lack of well-trained staff that can man the operation to ensure its continued success, and the need to put the company on a strong financial footing.

The last point to make in relation to press freedom is the fact that Kiribati being a poor country, the basic concern of the people is about physical surviva1. Press freedom while it is recognized as very important, it is not the primary concem of the general population.

ln Kiribati we do not have bodies such as the Australia Press Council or the Fiji Media Council to deal with complaints about the newspapers. In their absence the people basically use two methods. One is the Letters to the Editor and the other is the use of the Courts. With the expected further development of the press, one would anticipate more use of these methods in the future.

ln conclusion the major point to note is that government dominates the media scene in Kiribati. This does not help enhance press/media freedom in the country and the situation would only improve with further development of a free and independent press/media in the country. In my view this is the top prionty for Kiribati even before the issue of Media/Press Council is considered.

Ieremia Tabia

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