Nepal has robust press freedom compared to other countries: Minister Gurung

Kathmandu- Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, has opined that the freedom of the press and of expression in Nepal is open and liberal as compared to other countries. Talking to the Rastriya Samachar Samiti (RSS) today, Minister Gurung said the state of press freedom was robust in Nepal which has adopted pluralism and open society. "The Press in our country is much democratic and open if we look in the SAARC region itself.

It is necessary bring a decent and systematized policy to protect this prestige of Nepal's Press sector," he said. Stating that only a limited number of media are in operation in even developed nations as Singapore and Malaysia, the Communication and Information Technology Minister said the government has started carrying out home work for making the Press freedom and the freedom of expression dignified and systematic. He stated that in keeping with this policy a meeting of the Council of Ministers on August 25 had decided to lift the ban on TikTok. According to him, it is not appropriate to ban the social networking sites as these have become the centre of employment for the youths in recent days. However, the Minister said a decision has been made to allow the operation of TikTok only after fulfilling certain conditions as the necessary regulation is required.

According to the Clause 3 of the Social Media Operation Guidelines, 2080 BS, the TikTok users or company has to be registered. Similarly, the Clause 6 of the Guidelines stipulates for determining the users' point of contact. Minister Gurung said an agreement has been reached on a proposal requiring the TikTok representative to support in 'tourism promotion', 'digital security', 'digital literacy' and 'public education'. "We have also told them to carry out 'filtration' and 'moderation' of the indecent, vulgar words and sentences that are likely to spread social ill, in the English and Nepali language and even in the languages of the nation," the Minister said, adding that this will ensure a well-managed and sober social site in which nearly 200-300 youths will get employment.

Source: RSS