[EIDXA] DJ6SI arrested in Greece

[Jim Spencer]

Thanks to DX-CHAT this morning.  The story appears to be a little old but still very interesting.

Jim

  RADIO LAW: FAMED GERMAN DX'ER DJ6SI ARRESTED IN GREECE

  In what has to be one of the strangest international legal
  issues involving a ham radio operator, famed German
  DXpedition leader Baldur Drobnica, DJ6SI, has been arrested
  in Greece. But in a strange turn of events he was permitted
  to return to Germany if he promised that he would come back
  to Greece for trial. Amateur Radio Newsline's Bill
  Pasternak, WA6ITF, is in the newsroom trying to sort it all
  out:

  --

  Let me start by saying that it is very hard to know what has
  really taken place because most of the news sources are
  foreign language ham radio blogs and other news reports that
  have been electronically translated into English. Also, as
  we go to air there comes a purported statement in German
  from the person in the center of the controversy, DXer
  Baldur Drobnika, DJ6SI. It was posted to QRZ.com by YO4PX
  after being translated by DK5KF. As that is the latest
  information, lets start there and then take a look at the
  rest of the story as it seemed to unfold.

  The statement credited to DJ6SI reads as follows:

  "June 3rd, 2012, 20:46 (UTC 2)

  Dear Michael,

  I wasn't charged with espionage. As a reason of my arrest it
  was stated that:

  1. I performed radio traffic without the approval of the
  Greek authorities;

  2. I owned transmitting equipment which enabled the
  reception of other frequencies;

  To the accusation was later added an other point:

  I hindered the visualization of the content of my notebook.

  I would like to ask you to eliminate the information that I
  was arrested for espionage, or to replace it with my
  statement.

  Vy 73 Baldur DJ6SI"

  Now, the back story:

  According to news reports, 75 year old Baldur Drobnica,
  DJ6SI was on holiday on the Greek island of Kos. That's
  where he was reportedly taken into custody for the crime of
  espionage which was quickly reduced to operating amateur
  radio equipment. This, even though both Greece and
  Drobnika's home country of Germany are both signatories to
  the CEPT pan-European Amateur Radio licensing agreement.

  Even so, Greek news reports appear to indicate DJ6SI was
  actually arrested under a 1929 Greek law covering illegal
  operation of radio telegraph equipment even though the CEPT
  agreement would likely superscede the older law.

  According to Greek ham radio blogs the accusation of
  espionage was based on a complaint that he was "producing
  strange noises" with his computer. Those strange noises
  turned out to be CW and RTTY. This was corroborated by many
  who notice reports of his operation on Internet-based DX
  spotting clusters.

  Quite quickly the espionage charge appeared to disappear and
  the reduced charge under the 1929 law implemented. And in a
  strange turn of events, DJ6SI was permitted to return to
  Germany but he was told that he must return to Greece to
  stand trial on June 7th. That hearing is likely taking
  place as this newscast goes to air. But as several Greek
  hams have pointed out, DJ6SI would have not been permitted
  to leave the country if there were any real case or even a
  suspicion that he was engaged in spying activities.

  And one Greek ham radio blog took the matter a lot further.
  The Radio Amateur Association of Greece issued an angry
  statement defending DJ6SI. It claims that the
  responsibility for the entire matter should be placed on the
  to the shoulders of the officer that ignored laws and
  regulations, arrested DJ6SI and led him to court. They also
  place blame on the prosecutor who they say was quick to
  suggest his conviction based on a law passed in 1927, in
  the year 2012.

  The hams also point out that radio amateurs have been
  complaining for years to the responsible Ministry that
  public services and institutions and particularly police
  have not been informed properly about ham radio. The
  association says that it's the governments duty to inform
  all relevant authorities about amateur radio and its
  operations.

  Obviously. This story is far from over.

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