UNMIK/PR/1534
PRISTINA – The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo (SRSG) Søren Jessen-Petersen today signed UNMIK Regulation No. 2006/14 promulgating the Law on Radio Television of Kosovo adopted by the Assembly of Kosovo. The Law establishes a comprehensive legal framework for accurate and timely broadcasting information for the benefit of Kosovo residents regardless of their ethnicity, language or religion.
The objective of RTK as the public broadcaster is to ensure the broadcast of programming of high professional standards in the public interest. RTK is to guarantee diverse high-quality informative, cultural, educational and entertainment content. It has to raise awareness of the rights of the people of Kosovo in the area of public information and preserves and cultivates their languages and cultures.
RTK is responsible for informing the public accurately, supporting democratic processes and public scrutiny of authorities, and ensuring an appropriate balance of impartial news, cultural, artistic, sports, educational and entertainment programming as well as programs for children. RTK has responsibilities to provide diverse factual information for the benefit of all the public in Kosovo.
The Law requires the Kosovo Assembly to ensure a transparent framework for funding, which guarantees RTK the means necessary to accomplish its competencies and responsibilities. The Law provides that RTK shall be funded mainly by the Public Broadcasting Fee and may be complemented by other sources of funding which may include Kosovo Budget funds, incomes from publishing activities, public performances, advertising, sponsorship and sale of RTK programs. RTK funds are defined as public money governed by the Law on Financial Management and Accountability.
The Promulgating Regulation which brings the Law into effect contains important safeguards to ensure that minority communities receive an adequate share of broadcasting programs for their benefit. In particular, a provision has been included for 5 % of the Public Broadcasting Fee to be allocated to a special Minority Media Fund, which was established by the Office of the Prime Minister in 2005. The Law also provides for not less than 15 percent of RTK’s programme time, including prime time coverage, to be dedicated to non-majority communities in their respective languages on a proportionate basis.
