Temporary Broadcast Permit for ROJ TV in Germany

The German Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig issued a temporary broadcast permission to the Kurdish television channel ROJ TV after the German Ministry of the Interior had previously imposed a nationwide broadcasting ban.

In a session of the administrative court on 25 February it was decided to transfer the case file to the European Court of Justice in order to determine whether the provisional ban imposed on 19 June 2008 corresponds with the European law. The administrative court pointed out that the ministry may have some legal reasons for its decision.

Temporary permit after temporary ban

The administrative court reiterated that the German Ministry of the Interior accused ROJ TV, which broadcasts in Kurdish, of constituting a threat for the internal security by reason of allegedly "spreading propaganda for the PKK" (the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party). The court also reiterated that ROJ TV had rejected those claims.

Since ROJ TV is broadcasting from Denmark, the administrative court concluded that Danish authorities should be in charge of auditing the broadcasting. The court decided to permit the broadcast until a decision will have been reached by the European Court of Justice.

It is not known yet whether the ministry will apply for an appeal regarding the issues to be handled by the European Court of Justice.

Also Turkish authorities experienced diplomatic tensions with Denmark because of the broadcasting of ROJ TV, which was reflected in interviews given by former Prime Minister of Denmark Anders Von Rasmussen before he became Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). (EÖ/VK)