German edition of Bild will not send its journalists to cover the Confederations Cup because of restrictions on freedom of speech in Russia.
Under conditions of accreditation of journalists it is registered that they can write only about football matches and work in stadiums and "nearby sights". This did not please the leading German edition of Bild, which laments that it will not be able to write about possible discontent and protests.
Below is the text of the statement. Text formatting saved.
"After the Olympic Games in 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin again got a major sporting event - the 2018 World Cup.
And again the worst fears were confirmed! Putin destroyed the Olympic Games by doping.
And now he encroached on the freedom of speech.
Putin's censorship spread to the rehearsal of the World Cup (Confederation Cup -. ), In which our team will also participate - the world champion. Journalists are allowed to write only about football events of the so-called "Confederations Cup".
In addition, the place of work is limited to stadiums and "nearby attractions". A journalist who can not write about everything he sees is not a journalist, but a propagandist.
Not surprisingly, the corrupt FIFA allows it to Putin.
But it will be a scandal if the German Football Union, such sponsors as Adidas or ARD and ZDF TV channels, who paid millions for broadcasting rights, will agree to this!.
BILD will not send a single journalist to the so-called "Confederation Cup" as long as this censorship operates ".
Reinhard Grindel, the president of the German Football Union, understands the publication's concern: "On the next FIFA Council on May 9, I will raise the issue of free coverage of the Confederations Cup for accredited journalists. This would be an important signal for the 2018 World Cup, if already at the preparatory tournament the Russian organizers will demonstrate that there will not be restrictions on freedom of the press ".
If the media want to report from other territories or write about events not related to the Confederations Cup, then its employees should receive a separate visa in the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It should be noted that the restriction does not apply to Broadcasters of the tournament.
Deutsche Welle reports that on April 25, Russian Deputy Prime Minister and head of the organizing committee "Russia-2018" Vitaly Mutko reassured the German media, assuring that accreditation to the tournament would not restrict journalists in any way.
"Journalists in the Confederations Cup are not forbidden to write about anything, they can write anything," Mutko stressed..
Do you want to receive instant news about such news immediately on your smartphone? Subscribe to our channel in Telegram! Read more - on this page.