NEWS RELEASE
International Amateur Radio Union
P.O. Box 310905
Newington, CT 06131-0905 USA
FAX: +1 860 594 0259
E-Mail: iaru@iaru.org
3 July 2003

For immediate release

Introduction

On 4^th July 2003 the World Radiocommunication Conference, Geneva, 2003 ended and on the following day, the 5^th July 2003 the new international regulations governing the amateur and amateur satellite services, Article 25 of the Radio Regulations, that had been adopted by the Conference come into effect.

The language of many provisions in Article 25 as it was before 5^th July 2003 was the language of many years ago, reflecting the priorities, structures and attitudes of a time long gone. Provisions such as requiring amateur stations to use "plain language", that communications be limited to messages "relating to experiments", and remarks "for which by reason of their lack of importance, the use of the telegraph service could not enter into consideration", the prohibition of "international communications emanating from third parties", though that provision "may be modified by special arrangements between the interested countries", the requirement for Morse Code, and a number of other provisions are to be found in Article 8 of the General Radio Regulations annexed to the International Telecommunication Convention, Madrid, 1932.

The IARU policy was to seek the simplification of the Regulations affecting the amateur services by removal of regulations that were no longer necessary, the removal of provisions that were redundant because the subject matter was covered elsewhere in the Radio Regulations, the updating of provisions to reflect today's attitudes and activities, the identification of some standards for the qualification of amateurs and the addition of provisions that encouraged amateurs to be given the ability to provide emergency communications and to encourage the international recognition of amateur licences.

The Radio Regulations, the international regulations, define the fundamentals of the amateur services, and regulate international communications between stations in the amateur and amateur-satellite services. Administrations may and do make additional regulations, and regulate in detail the amateur services in their country.

This article compares the previous regulations with the new regulations and attempts to identify what is new and what is different. It does not attempt to explain why the particular provision was adopted in a particular form, which is another story told elsewhere. The numbers used to identify provisions are the temporary numbers used by the ITU in the course of the WRC.

Banned countries list

The first provision of Article 25, the so called "banned countries" list is a provision that is to be found in the 1932 Regulations, and is almost the same as the previous regulation except that it is now expressed positively rather negatively. The provision reads:

25.1 Radiocommunications between amateur stations of different countries shall be permitted unless the administration of one of the countries concerned has notified that it objects to such radiocommunications.

That is a provision that has only a limited effect on most amateurs.

The balance of Article 25 is more directly relevant to the day to day activities of radio amateurs.

What may be transmitted by Amateur Stations

The old international regulation relating to what an amateur station may transmit was as follows:

"When transmissions between amateur stations of different countries are permitted, they shall be made in plain language and shall be limited to messages of a technical nature relating to tests and to remarks of a personal character for which, by reason of their unimportance, recourse to the public telecommunications service is not justified."

This dealt with two distinct matters, the content of messages and the encryption of messages.

The phrase "messages of a technical nature relating to tests and to remarks of a personal character" could be construed unnecessarily narrowly, and did not reflect today's world, and the qualifying phrase "which, by reason of their unimportance, recourse to the public telecommunications service is not justified" was both vague and uncertain, and certainly reflected a time when in most countries the common carrier was a government monopoly.

So, the old provision was replaced by a new provision as follows:

25.2 Transmissions between amateur stations of different countries shall be limited to communications incidental to the purposes of the amateur service, as defined in No. 1.56 and to remarks of a personal character.

The term "incidental to" is wide, certainly not requiring a narrow connection with the "purposes of the amateurs service" and as the "purposes" of the amateur service set out in the definition are "self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations", the subject matter goes much beyond "tests". The new provision much more accurately reflects what in fact is the subject matter of amateur transmissions today.

Coded Messages

It is assumed that the phrase in the old provision requiring transmissions to be in "plain language" meant something transmitted by either voice or Morse that anyone could hear and understand. But today amateurs use many codes, and so what is meant by the phrase "plain language" could become a question in some countries. The language is no longer really appropriate. And, in any event a total prohibition is not appropriate as encryption is required for the control of satellites by command stations.

The requirement is not for "plain language" but a prohibition of messages encoded for the purposes of obscuring their meaning.

So, the simple phrase in the old regulation was replaced by a new provision, as follows:

25.2A Transmissions between amateur stations of different countries shall not be encoded for the purpose of obscuring their meaning, except for control signals exchanged between earth command stations and the space station in the amateur satellite service.

The IARU had suggested that it would be desirable for the exception to be expressed more widely than limited to satellite control signals, but a number of countries resisted this for security reasons. Of course the provision applies only to international communications. Therefore, repeater control signals, which are almost invariably transmitted within a single country and so are subject to national rather than international, regulation, may be encoded unless prohibited by national regulation.

"Third party" messages

One of the most difficult areas was the old provisions dealing with so called "third party messages." The provisions were as follows:

It is absolutely forbidden for amateur stations to be used for transmitting international communications on behalf of third parties.

The preceding provisions may be modified by special arrangements between the administrations of the countries concerned.

That prohibition of international communication on behalf of third parties is very wide. What is a communication on behalf of a third party? School children speaking to an astronaut is a communication on behalf of a third party, as is participation in the Jamboree on the Air. The provision inhibited preparation for disaster communication, and indeed, international disaster relief communications unless a special arrangements were in place between the two countries concerned.

The requirement that the prohibition could be modified by "special arrangements between the administrations of the countries concerned" was slow and clumsy, in many countries involving the ministry responsible for foreign relations.

The IARU suggested the suppression of both provisions, taking the view that each administration was fully empowered to regulate its amateurs, and in particular to define what communication could and could not be carried by an amateur station both nationally and internationally.

Of course, the fundamental requirement that the amateur service is non commercial is to be found in the definition of the amateur service and Article 25.2 set out above.

The new provision reads as follows:

25.3 Amateur stations may be used for transmitting international communications on behalf of third parties only in the case of an emergency or disaster relief. . An administration may determine the applicability of this provision to amateur stations under its jurisdiction.

The exception to the blanket prohibition for cases of emergency and disaster relief is important, and when read with the new provision intended to encourage emergency communication by amateur stations will hopefully lead administrations to adopt new regulations to facilitate such activities.

This second sentence of this provision enables each administration to define what is a communication on behalf of a third party, and with whom the stations under its jurisdiction may exchange such communications. If the other station's administration permits the same communication, then the communication may be exchanged internationally.

The removal of the requirement for bilateral agreements between countries is significant as the new regulation certainly provides the means by which each administration can permit many activities, such as disaster relief, practice for emergency communication, and educational communications to take place internationally.

Morse Code

The old regulation that Morse was a requirement for the operators of amateur stations below 30 MHz was found in a provision that read as follows:

Any person seeking a licence to operate the apparatus of an amateur station shall prove that he is able to send correctly by hand and to receive correctly by ear texts in Morse code signals. The administrations concerned may, however, waive this requirement in the case of stations making use exclusively of frequencies above 30 MHz.

That was replaced with a provision giving each administration the right to decide whether or not Morse is a required qualification as follows:

25.5 Administrations shall determine whether or not a person seeking a licence to operate an amateur station shall demonstrate the ability to send and receive texts in Morse code signals.

The alternative of simply deleting the old provision was rejected because a number of administrations thought that the matter was so important that a positive decision not to require Morse as a qualification was appropriate. The effect is actually the same: Morse code is no longer an internationally required qualification for an amateur licence, though an administration may still require it.

The Qualification of Amateurs

Apart from the Morse code as a qualification, the previous regulation provided:

Administrations shall take such measures as they judge necessary to verify the operational and technical qualifications of any person wishing to operate the apparatus of an amateur station.

This was replaced by a new provision as follows:

25.6 Administrations shall verify the operational and technical qualifications of any person wishing to operate an amateur station. Guidance for standards of competence may be found in the most recent version of Recommendation ITU-R M.1544.

The reference to the Recommendation is a non-mandatory reference. That is, an administration is not bound to follow it, but it is expected that all administrations will take the Recommendation into account when setting the qualification for an amateur licensee.

The Recommendation is very general, for example providing that any person seeking a license to operate an amateur station should demonstrate a "theoretical knowledge of: Radio regulations, international, domestic", and under the heading "Radio system theory", "transmitters, receivers, antennas and propagation and measurements." Consistently with the decisions of the Conference, the Recommendation does not suggest any requirement for a Morse skill.

That accords with the IARU position that the Radio Regulations should give some guidance as to the qualification appropriate for an amateur licence, but should not attempt to set a syllabus, as the diversity of environments for which a standard must be set is very great.

The identification of a standard, the topics on which knowledge is required, reflects one of the essential elements of the amateur service, namely that an amateur is a person who has demonstrated an operational and technical qualification, distinguishing that amateur from many other users of the spectrum.

Power

The next provision in the new Regulations is:

25.7 The maximum power of amateur stations shall be fixed by the administrations concerned.

That is almost the same as the old regulation, but with the words after those words in the old provision being omitted, so the words "having regard to the technical qualifications of the operators and to the conditions under which these stations are to operate" are no longer part of the provision.

The application of other provisions of the Radio Regulations

Again, Article 25.8 is a shortened version of the previous article, and reads as follows:

25.8 All pertinent Articles and Provisions of the Constitution, the Convention and of these Regulations shall apply to amateur stations.

That changes the reference to "general rules" to "pertinent" provisions of the current ITU documents and omits the sentence "In particular, the emitted frequency shall be as stable and as free from spurious emissions as the state of technical development for such stations permits." which is unnecessary as the requirements apply to amateur stations in any event.

In reality, there is no change arising from the different wording. Probably the provision is unnecessary in any event, but it offered some assurance to administrations that amateurs will abide by all pertinent rules.

Call signs

Finally, a provision that is the same as the previous provision:

25.9 During the course of their transmissions, amateur stations shall transmit their call sign at short intervals.

Emergency Communications

Then, a completely new provision is included in Article 25, a provision that really needs no explanation.

25.9A Administrations are encouraged to take the necessary steps to allow amateur stations to prepare for and meet communication needs in support of disaster relief.

That provision should be read in conjunction with Article 25.3, and it is hoped that administrations will make regulations that facilitate amateurs preparing for emergency situations and providing communications in emergencies and for disaster relief. This was an important IARU objective.

The international recognition of the licences of visiting amateurs

A further completely new provision is added to Article 25:

25.9B Administrations may determine whether or not to permit a person who has been granted a licence to operate an amateur station by another administration, to operate an amateur station while that person is temporarily in its territory, subject to such conditions or restrictions it may impose.

This provision has been interpreted by some to mean that an administration may, if it wishes, permit a licensee from another country to operate in its territory without issuing a licence, as would otherwise be required by Article 18 of the Radio Regulations. There is some substance in interpretation, as the provision deals with "permissions" and applies only to a person temporarily in the territory of the other administration.

The interpretation of the provision is, of course, a matter for administrations, but hopefully it is a provision that will encourage administrations to allow amateurs to enjoy their hobby while travelling by recognising the foreign licence. A global recognition would fill in the gaps left by the CEPT Recommendation T/R 61-01 and the International Amateur Radio Permit of the OAS.

The Amateur-satellite service

The final two provisions deal with amateur-satellite service, the first being unchanged and reading as follows:

25.10 The provisions of Section I of this Article shall apply equally, as appropriate, to the amateur-satellite service.

The next provision is the only operative provision in Article 25 dealing with the amateur-satellite service. The previous provision read as follows:

Space stations in the amateur-satellite service operating in bands shared with other services shall be fitted with appropriate devices for controlling emissions in the event that harmful interference is reported in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 22. Administrations authorizing such space stations shall inform the IFRB and shall ensure that sufficient earth command stations are established before launch to guarantee that any harmful interference which might be reported can be terminated by the authorizing administration (see No. 2612).

The provision was unnecessarily complex, repeating obligations that are found elsewhere in the Radio Regulations, particularly Article 22.

In the end, the following simplified provision was adopted:

25.11 Administrations authorizing space stations in the amateur-satellite service shall ensure that sufficient earth command stations are established before launch to ensure that any harmful interference caused by emissions from a station in the amateur-satellite service can be terminated immediately (see No. 22.1).

The new provision avoids the repetition in different words of regulations that already apply to the stations, and simply requires that sufficient earth command stations are established before launch.

The Definition of the Amateur Service

When, in 1996, the IARU commenced its examination of the issues raised by placing Article 25 of the Radio Regulations on the agenda of a future World Radiocommunication Conference, it very quickly saw that the definition remained as relevant and appropriate as it had been over the many years that it been a part of the Radio regulations.

It is worth setting out that definition for the sake of completeness:

1.56 Amateur service: A radiocommunication service for the purpose of self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations carried out by amateurs, that is, by duly authorised persons interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest.

Similarly, the definition of the amateur-satellite service remains unchanged:

1.57 Amateur-satellite service: A radiocommunication service using space stations on earth satellites for the same purposes as those of the amateur service.

The Conference decided that no change was required to those definitions in Article 1.

Conclusion

The Radio Regulations are the written result of the welding together of the different views of different people with different languages and from different cultures. It is no doubt easy to say that some of the provisions could be expressed more elegantly, and that some of the provisions are not necessary.

Of course, it is true that the narrower provisions of the old international regulations have not really inhibited the amateur service in many countries, with administrations preferring a liberal interpretation. But in the long run, the amateur service cannot afford to have countries ignore the international regulations. It is fundamental that the amateurs have appropriate "operational and technical qualifications." A speed limit that is unrealistic and not enforced is going to be ignored. What was appropriate in 1932 may not be appropriate in 2003.

In the end it is suggested that the meaning of Article 25 is clear, even if expressed in language different from the language suggested by the IARU. What is important is the substance, not the form, and it is suggested that the changes and additions made to Article 25 by WRC 2003 will meet the needs for the future of the amateur service identified by the IARU.