Polish Public Broadcaster TVP has appointed new leadership to its flagship broadcaster for Belarus, Belsat, in a move to integrate the exiled Belarusian-language television channel into its Center for Foreign Language Programs – despite calls for Belsat’s operations to remain independent.
On Nov. 15, TVP appointed Alina Koushyk, a former anchor and producer at Belsat, as the head of the Belarusian editorial office. Koushyk, who had left Belsat two years ago for a role in Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s shadow cabinet, said, “We aimed to advocate for Belsat to remain an independent channel, but unfortunately, our efforts did not succeed.”
The merger comes amid broader restructuring of Poland’s state media following the defeat of the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party in the 2023 parliamentary elections, with the new government saying it was seeking to “restore impartiality” to TVP.
The restructuring implies Belsat’s formerly separate airtime will be split into three sections – six hours each for Belarusian-language programming, the Russia-focused news channel Vot Tak, and a Ukrainian-language broadcaster that has yet to be formed.
Koushyk replaces Aleksy Dzikawicki, a co-founder and acting director of Belsat, who on Nov. 19 requested that his contract be terminated. Dzikawicki said he had requested early dismissal to avoid having to carry out an order to formally liquidate Belsat as an independent entity within TVP.
Belsat started broadcasting in 2007 as the first Belarusian-language TV channel, offering coverage in the Belarusian language, which has been gradually excluded from Belarusian public life by the Lukashenko regime.
Belarus is low in the press freedom rating, ranking 157th among 180 countries in 2023.
Almost no independent media are left in Belarus due to the Lukashenko regime’s efforts to stamp out a free press, which have seen 40 media professionals prosecuted, outlets being branded as “extremist,” and punishments introduced for sharing “extremist” content.
The potential downsizing of Belsat to only one of several editorial offices within the Center for Foreign Language Programs has drawn criticism from Belarusian opposition leaders.
However, TVP World director and editor-in-chief Michał Broniatowski has denied that Belsat will lose its independence after the merger, saying “Belsat’s editorial office will be fully Belarusian, there will be no ‘orders’ to cover what the Foreign Ministry wants, or not to cover what it does not want covered.”
In March, Belsat, lost 47% of its total financing from the Foreign Ministry and Poland’s TVP, and its longtime director, Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy, was dismissed.
The International Press Institute (IPI) has urged Poland’s Foreign Ministry to reconsider the decision, warning of the “disastrous impact” on the accessibility of independent Belarusian news. While acknowledging Poland’s financial burden, the IPI called for measures to ensure Belsat’s survival as a vital platform for European security.
The restructuring is set to be finalized on March 1, 2025.
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Publish date : 2024-11-22 05:21:00
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