In 2009, the broadcasting of the European Radio for Belarus continued. This radio station broadcasts from Warsaw with the support of Czech, American and other governments since 2005 and currently has 280 000 listeners and over 150 000 Belarusians read each month the ERB reports reproduced in other media, for example the popular http://www.tut.by.
Radio broadcasts to Belarus, especially for students aged 15-35, focusing on contemporary music, entertainment and information programs, and in particular provides independent news. Particully because of these news, Belarusian government does not allow the radio to broadcast on Belarusin FM. The radio therefore broadcasts from the Lithuanian and Ukrainian transmitters.
From June to September 2009, an one-hour news and entertainment program was broadcast directly at frequencies of the Minsk Avtoradio. But the Belarusian Ministry of Information banned the broadcast on the grounds that with elections approaching, the news could begin to be unduly critical of the state authorities.
A friendly step by the Belarusian authorities was to grant the accreditation to 12 ERB journalists and the establishment of a newsroom inside Belarus. Other stations that broadcast to Belarus from abroad, such BelSat TV and Radio Racyja, are still seeking accreditation and thus the legalization of their work in Belarus without success.
The European Radio for Belarus also supports independent music initiatives and together with other organizers it held the "Be Free" festival in August 2009. The festival featured Belarusian and Ukrainian rock groups, was held in Chernihiv, Ukraine, and was attended by approximately 20 000 people.
During the past year, the radio established an internet section dedicated to festivals in Belarus and Europe and a section dedicated to reports from the European Union countries.
Compared to 2008, the number of visitors to the ERB website almost doubled to 414 953 unique visitors from the territory of Belarus.
In 2009, ERB trained 69 young Belarusian journalists and technical staff of the radio. Coaches came for example from the BBC or the Serbian independent radio and television station B 92, which operated in Serbia during the Milosevic regime.
The radio was supported in 2009 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Czech Republic, the Government of the USA, Sweden, Poland, the Netherlands and by the European Commission. Civic Belarus is the co-founder and partner of the radio.
tel.: +420 222 955 586 | fax: +420 224 813 460 | info (at) civicbelarus.eu
Civic Belarus | Belohorska 27 | 169 00 Prague 6
