Commission must justify bizarre ban

THE peremptory decision of the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) to ban a Trocaire advertisement highlighting the inequalities facing women in the developing world is absolutely ludicrous.

To claim it is in breach of broadcasting laws which rule out ads with a political or religious objective is nonsensical. What planet is the BCI on?

Of course the ad in question has a political end — but it is directed at the Third World where the inequalities faced by women are graphically documented. How often have we seen TV pictures from regions riven with HIV-AIDS, where women with starving children queue interminably for aid to feed their families?