Belsat TV Director Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy has made a statement on the channel’s operation in the near future. On Sunday evening, Witold Wazczykowski, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, voiced the ministry’s plans of the channel’s transition to a web mode and its journalists’ transfer to TVP Polonia.
In view of yesterday’s interview of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Witold Waszczykowski with the portal Wpolityce.pl and the information obtained earlier, I hereby declare as follows:
1. Belsat TV is operating as usual and will continue working until decisions on changing the mode of operation are made by the Polish Public television (TVP) leadership.
2. The concept that Minister Waszczykowski presented in the interview came as a big surprise to me.
3. Until now, TVP authorities have been discussing the idea of establishing an entity called TVP Zagranica (TVP World). It was supposed to be a body that would combine separate TV channels targeting an international audience. The agency would also monitor the production of the corresponding programme content. The TVP World was planned to comprise TVP Polonia and TV Biełsat which would be restructured and adapted to the expectations of an international audience. In addition, TVP World was meant to start work on the new Russian-language channel and take charge of the English language (or German language) production for the would-be TV-V4 (Visegrad Television).
4. Since I was the initiator of the project which was presented, inter alia, in the course of the competition for the position of TVP Chairperson, I know that the overall implementation of such a large and important project would take one and a half years and require additional agreements regarding its financing and allocation of funds.
5. Since the concept presented by Minister Witold Waszczykowski is far from the previously discussed projects, as well as from actual major and technical conditions, I consider it necessary to hold professional consultations which will clear up the situation and map out TVP’s further plans concerning the issue of international broadcasting and cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other government agencies and public media.
Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy, Belsat TV Director
