After the ordered closure of the Deutsche Welle (DW) office in Moscow, the Broadcasting Council called on Russia to quickly return the accreditations. Otherwise, DW director Peter Limbourg wants to find new ways of reporting.
“What we are witnessing here is an unbelievable blow to freedom of the press,” said Prelate Karl Jüsten, chairman of the Broadcasting Council, in a press release published by Deutsche Welle on Monday. Jüsten called on the Russian authorities to “immediately reverse the withdrawal of accreditation for DW and the closure of the office.”
It is completely inappropriate to equate the licensing of RT Deutsch with DW’s journalistic work in Russia. Unlike RT Deutsch, the government has no influence on DW’s programming, it said.
Director Peter Limbourg spoke of a “completely exaggerated decision” and announced: “Should DW be denied journalistic work in Russia in the long term, we will of course find ways to continue reporting on developments in the country.”
DW ban on broadcasting in retaliation for a Russian broadcaster stopping broadcasts in Germany
Last Thursday, Russia ordered a broadcast ban on Deutsche Welle in Moscow. The following day, Russia closed the broadcaster’s foreign office in Moscow and revoked all employees’ accreditations. The step was taken in retaliation for the broadcast stop for the German-language television channel RT DE of the Russian state medium RT, which was launched in Germany in mid-December. The broadcast stop was imposed because of a missing German broadcasting license.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also announced that it would initiate proceedings to declare DW a “foreign agent”. The controversial Foreign Agents Act obliges individuals and organizations that receive financial support from abroad to specially label their publications.
As DW reports, the Russian Foreign Ministry has invited the station’s Moscow office managers to an appointment to discuss the next steps after the ordered closure.
Sources:with material from the DPA
Source: Stern
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