The German government should simplify the asylum procedure for media workers from Russia forced to leave their country, as it has already done for Ukrainian journalists. With such an appeal was made on Saturday, March 5, the head of the German branch of the organization “Reporters Without Borders” (RSF) Christian Mir (Christian Mihr).
Reporters Without Borders expects more Russian journalists to leave the country soon as they face draconian fines for reporting independently, the organization’s website said in a statement.
Punishment for discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in the media
On March 4, the State Duma adopted amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation in three readings at once, strengthening the responsibility for disseminating information about the actions of the Russian Armed Forces, which the authorities consider to be fake, as well as for public calls for the imposition of sanctions against Russia.
As the press service of the State Duma reported at the time, “public dissemination under the guise of reliable reports of deliberately false information containing data on the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation” will be punished by a fine of 700 thousand to 1.5 million rubles. “In addition, imprisonment for a term of up to three years.In some cases, the term of imprisonment can be up to 15 years.
Christian Mir
After the adoption of these amendments, two German public TV channels – ARD and ZDF – announced that they were suspending their work in Russia. “Against the background of open censorship and criminalization of independent reporting, our colleagues in Moscow have no other choice,” Kristian Mir commented on this decision on March 5.
“Vladimir Putin wants to ban all content that contradicts state propaganda. The fact that he now also directly addresses foreign media is a new quality, but this was to be expected in light of the dramatic events of the past few days. We are especially concerned about the situation of local employees of ARD, ZDF and other international media,” he added.
A number of other international broadcasters and news agencies, including the American television channel CNN, the Bloomberg news agency, and the British media company BBC, also announced on March 4 that they were completely or partially suspending their activities in Russia.
Pressure on Ekho Moskvy and Dozhd TV channel
Some Russian media have also come under great pressure in recent days. In particular, on March 1, the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation accused Ekho Moskvy and the Dozhd TV channel of purposefully and systematically posting information with “calls for extremist activity, violence, as well as knowingly false information regarding the actions of Russian military personnel” in the war with Ukraine. That same evening, Ekho Moskvy was disconnected from broadcasting in the Russian Federation, the radio station’s website, as well as the website of Dozhd, was blocked. Both media outlets announced their intention to appeal the decision of the Prosecutor General’s Office in court.
On March 3, the Board of Directors of CJSC “Echo of Moscow” decided to close the radio station and its website.
Russia is ranked 150 out of 180 in the Reporters Without Borders annual press freedom rankings.
See also:
