Maldives Media Coucnil. Like all other media-related regulations, the Code of Ethics also focuses on the protection of children from the harmful influences of the media. In publishing news and information about children, their dignity and rights will be protected. No information that will reveal the identity of children who are the victims of physical, mental or sexual abuse or children who perpetrate such acts on others will be published in the media30. Similarly, the Broadcasting Commission’s Code of Ethics31, currently in the draft stages, also focuses on the protection of children from media’s harmful influences and contains no provsions that encourage the participation of children or the State Party’s obligations to provide children with access to information in a manner commensurate with their development. The only provisions that require the State to provide children with access to and participation in the media is Article 7 of the Law on the Protection of the Rights of Children (9/91): Special programmes providing useful information and guidance to children shall be included in television and radio programmes. Such programmes must not contain any material verbal or pictorial, which may adversely influence the morals of behaviour of children32. Consultative meetings with members of media regulatory bodies revealed mixed attitudes towards children’s participation. The Maldives Broadcasting Commission admitted that children were not included in the exhaustive consultations with stakeholders undertaken in the drafting of the new broadcasting regulations discussed above. This implies that the Broadcasting Commission does not view children as stakeholders in the media, and/or does not regard children’s views and opinions as relevant or important to shaping the future of Maldivian media. Members of the Commission, however, stated they recognise the importance of not just protecting children from the harmful influences of the media but also the importance of their participation. They also expressed concern that there is currently no public service broadcaster in the country, and were of the opinion that without such a service it would not be possible to have a media that pays appropriate and adequate attention to children and their rights. They identified unacceptably high levels of commercialisation and politicisation of the media as the key factors in the current neglect of children’s programming, and suggested that unless more funding is made available to the production of children’s content, the situation cannot be remedied. The Broadcasting Commission is of the opinion that the introduction of regulatory mechanisms that make it compulsory for broadcasting licensees to dedicate a percentage of their content to children’s programming maybe viewed as micro-management and interference in editorial policy— allegations which the Broadcasting Commission is keen to avoid. 30 Article 18, Maldivian Media Code of Ethics, Maldives Media Council Code of Ethics (First Draft), Maldives Broadcasting Commission, accessed http://www.broadcom.org.mv/dh/images/upload/3.%20Code%20of%20Ethics%20FINAL.pdf, on November 20, 2011 32 Article 7, Protection of the Rights of Children Act 9/91 31 23