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Liberia: Star Radio Officially Relaunched

Posted on: Thursday, 14 July 2005, 06:00 CDT

Star Radio from Monrovia was officially relaunched on 12 July, following the resumption of broadcasts on 25 May 2005. The following broadcasts were transmitted on the 12 and 13 July on FM and shortwave:

12 July, 2100 gmt: The broadcast started with a 10-minute news bulletin covering national, African and international issues. This was followed by "Star Spotlight", a programme interviewing important Liberian personalities about their lives. The transmission appeared to close abruptly at 2132 gmt.

13 July, 0700 gmt: The 10-minute news bulletin was followed by "Liberia Today", an in-depth analysis of national issues. This edition included discussions on the state of a local prison, the peace process and the up-coming election.

In addition, the programme had an interview with Star Radio's chairman of the board of governors. The chairman said that the station is to remain independent and transparent and that Star Radio believes in "giving the news as it is".

The chairman was then asked if he thought the station could be closed down again, because it presents facts that the government may not like. He replied, "I don't want to believe that anything like that will happen".

Star Radio, www.starradio.org.lr, is run by the Swiss Hirondelle foundation, www.hirondelle.org, which is funded by a number of western governments and NGOs. The Liberian government closed the station in January 1998, saying that it was broadcasting illegally.

Source: BBC Monitoring Media

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