Sergei Stefanov: TV-6 leadership craves for scandal

Yesterday, PRAVDA.Ru reported about the Supreme Arbitrary Court’s decision concerning TV-6 Moscow Independent Broadcast Corporation. Therefore, decision of subordinate institutions about the TV company’s liquidation was confirmed. So, the TV-6 case seems to have been finished. Though the TV channel’s leadership cannot agree with it, while intending to appeal against the court’s decision in the Constitutional Court. The lawyer Geralina Lyubarskaya intends to contest the decision in the Strasbourg European Court on Human Rights. In Russian democratic mass media, hysteria is being pumped around the TV channel’s closing. The TV-6 subject or violation of freedom of speech in Russia will most likely be one of the main subjects next week. The West, and first of all the USA, started to pour oil on the flames. In the US, they seem to be non indifferent to this seemingly internal affair of Russia, because the question is about liquidation of “the last national TV company” of Russia. In general, TV-6 director general Yevgeni Kiselev called the yesterday’s decision of court “fascist, Gestapo’s decision”. Kiselev supposes himself to be “legally right.” Boris Berezovski, in his turn, complained to journalists of the Kremlin blackmailing TV-6 journalists. It turns out that the question is about “intentional violation of the law,” while the press’s minister Mikhail Lesin and the President Administration’s head Mikhail Voloshin participate in it, - this is in short the Berezovski’s statement. According to US Department of State official, Richard Bowcher, Russian legal institutions obviously demonstrated that impartiality is not peculiar to them, therefore in Russia, political, but not legal processes take place. According to the Liberation Radio, International Committee of Journalists’ Protection is concerned with the event. New York Times noticed today, that of the three main TV channels in Russia, two are controlled by the state, while the third one is controlled by the state monopoly. Washington Post complains about Putin and his government not making official statements, while LukOil representatives also avoid any answers. Though every moment, Putin can order to recall the channel’s broadcasting licence. Financial Times, Guardian, Liberation and other leading Western editions comment the event in the same spirit. Apropos, Liberation, while remembering the last-year stir about NTV channel, when then-director of the TV channel Yevgeni Kiselev and his journalists left for TV-6, noticed: “The future of this team that gained its authority thanks its critical coverage of Chechen events again turned out to be under threat…” Really, how long Russian army’s reputation could be blackened with impunity? Times change… Let them protest. At least the Kiselev’s NTV also was forgotten once. Soon, Kiselev’s TV-6 will suffer the same fate. Specialists suppose that it is practically impossible to reestablish TV-6. As for the Constitutional Court, it is not for sure that the company’s appeal to be considered there. Though if even the appeal is considered there, it hardly will be allowed, all the more in time. While the company’s liquidation must be finished by the end of this April.

Sergei Stefanov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Vera Solovieva

https://english.pravda.ru/news/russia/26392-n/