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East Turkestan:
Chinese-language NTDTV harassed by Beijing
The New York based television station New Tang
Dynasty TV is a valuable mean of expression and news
source for oppressed peoples in China, like the
Tibetans and Uyghurs.
Authorities in Beijing have been harassing New
York-based television channel New Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV)
since its launch in February 2002 as the China ensures
it maintains its grip on Chinese-language electronic
media.
NTDTV's contract with satellite operator New Skies
Satellites (NSS) for Asia transmission recently ended
after prolonged financial and political pressure from
Beijing. NTDTV has now resumed broadcasting to China
and Asia via Eutelsat's W-5 satellite covering Asia.
China has showed itself ready to use the most
reprehensible methods to protect its monopoly,
including threats, political and financial pressure
and blackmail.
Regrettably some Western telecommunication companies
cave in to Chinese pressure and suspend broadcasts of
channels that challenge the Chinese communist party
monopoly of the airwaves.
Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières)
fears that Beijing will keep up the pressure,
particularly against Eutelsat, the French broadcast
regulatory agency (CSA) and the French government,
following resumption of NTDTV broadcasts to China and
the recent inauguration of the channel on the Hotbird
satellite to Europe and the Middle East.
Netherlands-based satellite operator NSS had begun
broadcasting the channel on open signal to Asia on 1st
July 2003. But just three days after the start of
broadcasts, NSS encrypted the signal preventing
Chinese satellite dish owners from seeing the channel.
The decision was taken following threats of financial
reprisals against the company made to NSS
representatives in Beijing. In January 2004, pressure
was intensified to ensure that NTDTV was completely
excluded from NSS-6 Asia satellite transmission. NTDTV
management many times requested NSS to restore the
open signal broadcast but this was refused, and on 1st
May 2004 the NTDTV transmission to Asia ended.
Beijing accuses NTDTV of belonging to the banned
Falungong movement, which it considers a ³diabolical
cult². Many of the channel's volunteers are indeed
followers of Falungong, but NTDTV offers a range of
programmes, in particular news programmes that provide
a sharp contrast with the propaganda on state
television CCTV.
NTDTV told Reporters Without Borders that other
companies had refused to broadcast or host the channel
on their satellites for fear of Chinese reprisals. At
the start of 2004, Philippines satellite operator
Mabuhay cancelled plans to transmit a special Chinese
New Year broadcast after threats from the Chinese
ambassador in Manila. PanAmSat, which carries the
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV on many of its
satellite platforms worldwide, has also refused to
broadcast NTDTV.
Through CCTV, Beijing broadcasts on 30 different
satellite platforms worldwide, while six is enough to
ensure coverage of 99% of the worldıs population.
This massive presence allows the government to
blackmail operators. In 2002, CCTV left the operator
Taipei International because it decided to accept
NTDTV. The state channel signed a new contract after
the removal of NTDTV. In February 2003, the US
operator Atlanta ADTH went back on an agreement in
principle to carry NTDTV, for fear of losing contracts
with Chinese channels.
Since 1st May 2004, NTDTV is once again accessible to
satellite dish owners in China thanks to transmission
on the W-5 satellite by the Paris-based Eutelsat.
NTDTV is now freely accessible to more than 200
million satellite viewers worldwide. The channel was
approved in April by the French Superior Audiovisual
Council (CSA). Reporters without borders fears that
the CSA and the French government are coming under
official pressure from China for this licensing
decision.
Moreover, Eutelsat is legally obliged to comply with
the principle of equality of access, pluralism and
non-discrimination set out under Article 3 of the
Convention that regulates this company under French
law.
In addition to leaning on telecommunication operators,
the Chinese authorities have several times prevented
NTDTV journalists from working. Its reporters have
been refused access to public events and press
conferences in the United States and Europe under
pressure from Chinese officials.
Source: Reporters Without Borders.
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