May 14, 2003	Wednesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 11, 1424

BAGHDAD, May 13: The US-sponsored Iraqi television news station complained of American censorship ahead of its first broadcast on Tuesday, including attempts to stop it airing passages from the Koran, the Muslim holy book.

If the network overcomes last-minute transmitter glitches, a country fed on a diet of state propaganda could see the start of what is being trumpeted as a new broadcasting era.

Deprived of any locally produced television since US troops ousted president Saddam Hussein, Baghdad residents with electricity will be able to see the Iraqi flag on their screens, hear the national anthem and watch a three-minute address from Jay Garner, the No.2 in the US-led civilian administration.

But the Iraqi Media Network has postponed plans to air a half-hour live news programme because of disputes over editorial control.

“As journalists we will not submit to censorship,” said Dan North, a Canadian documentary maker advising Iraqis at the station, which plans two hours of programming a night for viewers in Baghdad.

“This whole idea was about starting the genesis of an open media so we will not accept an outside source scrutinising what we produce.”

The charges of censorship could reaffirm for many Iraqis the perception that Washington is not allowing them a free hand in building democratic institutions.

US officials made no comment on the allegations. They had earlier said the station would be a welcome change from the Saddam era.

“This is not American propaganda. This is the first time in 25 years Iraqis are getting TV that is not propaganda,” said Robert Teasdale, a US adviser to the network.—Reuters