Resolution on the Jamming of Satellite Broadcasts To Iran
Whereas the Broadcasting Board of Governors’ direct-to-home satellite broadcasts of daily, televised news programs to the Iranian people have been jammed since the approximate time of their inauguration on Sunday July 6th, 2003;
Whereas Iranian citizens have told BBG officials that they were being prevented from receiving intelligible reception of the Voice of America’s televised news programs;
Whereas this interference constitutes a direct and effective violation of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ Article 19 that guarantees individuals the right “to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”
Whereas this interference constitutes a deliberate effort to block the public’s access to satellite telecommunications, and as such represents a major threat to international satellite communications;
And whereas the best information of the service provider for transmission of televised news programming is that the source of jamming is located near Havana, Cuba;
Now therefore, be it resolved:
That the Broadcasting Board of Governors vigorously affirms the human rights of the Iranian people to seek and receive information and ideas;
That the Broadcasting Board of Governors strongly condemns the deliberate and malicious interference with its legitimate effort to impart truthful, objective, and balanced news to its Iranian audience;
That the Board of Broadcasting Governors calls upon the international community to censure the states that have caused this interference;
That the Board of Broadcasting Governors urges such service providers as Intelsat and Eutelsat to cease providing services to those states that have deliberately restricted the Iranian people’s access to international broadcasting until and unless this illegal interference with the free and open flow of international communications ends.
That the Board of Broadcasting Governors urges the Department of State, the Federal Communications Commission and all appropriate elements of the U.S. government to lodge an appropriate formal protest against the government of Cuba for this unwarranted and wrongful interference.
Adopted this 15th Day of July, 2003 by the Broadcasting Board of Governors.