TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarusian authorities on Monday declared that the Belarusian service of the German state broadcaster Deutsche Welle is an “extremist” organization and banned all its activities in the country.
The declaration means anyone working with Deutsche Welle producing content for the Belarusian service potentially faces a seven-year prison sentence. Anyone who reads and reposts articles by Deutsche Welle could be found guilty of an administrative or criminal offense.
Peter Limbourg, Deutsche Welle’s director general, criticized the decision, saying the accusations are “unfounded” and do not reflect the true nature of the Belarusian service’s work.
Belarusian authorities have already named 199 organizations as “extremist” and they use the label to suppress dissent in the country. The list includes the Belarusian Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the independent Belarusian TV channel Belsat, broadcasting in the Belarusian language from the Polish capital Warsaw.