with all of its funding. emily oliver has investigated the links between the b.b.c. and the foreign office in doing so she has brought surprising documents to light about the secret information research department i r d. b i r d was based in the foreign office up to 300 people working there in the fifty's and so they they basically spread anti communist propaganda and they would feed this information to journalists to trade unionists to politicians but also to institutions including very importantly the b.b.c. external services and that's the german service and it lasted until $977.00 when it was shut down and the activities of the i.r. only became known to the public in 178 no one had actually known that this department existed. the i.r.t. maintained an especially close relationship with the b.b.c.'s german service it was

headed by richard o'rourke and austin harrison both former army officers the documents show how intensively the propaganda specialists from the foreign office and the 2 leading b.b.c. journalists were together. in harrison told his b.b.c. colleagues almost nothing about his regular trips to east germany. but he shared the details with a secret department in the foreign office these reports also went to the west german federal government in bonn as can be seen in documents from the political archives of the german foreign ministry. i have never heard of this but i am not surprised it really fits into what i often asked myself there is more to it then what i am presented here the feeling that there is

more to it than we think there will be we this stuff basically very naive going about our business and thinking we are working for the b.b.c. . well through actually working for the foreign office who think this is what a lot of my colleagues never really grasped. even more explosive by the b.b.c.'s regular analyses of letters from east german listeners. these were also sent to the i r d. highlighting the most relevant extracts it in turn passed on these findings about the political mood in the east to its west german allies. every 2 weeks as a matter of course these reports on listen the research which which contain extracts of letters are passed on to the information research department of the foreign office the letters from east germany and these listener research reports even though they're anecdotal information they provide information that the british

foreign office and the west german foreign of this just wouldn't have had access to otherwise we don't know exactly what they did with it but it was clearly valuable to. the radio program unsigned platters became an important commodity in the cold war propaganda campaign. but in unsigned letters. but this was not known to its listeners in east germany. i think if it had it would probably have stopped people from writing to the b.b.c. and it gives credence to the stasi allegations which say well these people are corresponding with western government agencies and they are providing material to anti communist. functionaries and so they are harming our state the while austin horris

and shared the contents of the listener's letters with the foreign ministries in london and bonn can hines bore shot had to serve his sentence in the desert our prison. for juvenile offenders. were the young man separated from family and home for writing a few critical letters it was both traumatic and highly formative. sure to those. is a key experience was this young lieutenant who talked with me as he drove me there . he ended the conversation with the remark you are lucky that you live in east germany today under the nazis we have sent you up the chimney already for legs to shrug but we are. to date there are no official numbers on how many letter writers to the b.b.c. were arrested or convicted however the $973.00 the report shows that there

were 15 arrests that year for letters to the b.b.c. . the whole if you walk in alan is also taking a trip back in time fortunately for him his letters to the b.b.c. were not intercepted by fan but as a young student he faced the next ordeal conscription into the east german national people's army. this was unthinkable for christians and pacifists about refusing man to prison and so as a last resort he decided to flee the country in 1973 he met a west german escape assistant so by way of idea the driver told me all stalker as soon as i reached the elba bridge and that will open the trunk briefly that we all jump in very quickly so that we do not attract attention. playing

the myth that i'll keep going with you in the truck if. why the. 2 ounce later they reached the nothing bone crossing on the border with west germany. so i know. we drove into a carriage. while i was still a bit clueless in the hope that it might just be a short stop. doesn't fly small step to give med the guns and all of a sudden the trunk open or the undisturbed. after for the lights were pointed out the then they said. if you try to run away you will get a bullet through your lungs and. i

was interrogated for hours luckily his other illegal activity the letters to the b.b.c. was never mentioned. but even so the court came down hard on him 5 years in prison for attempting to flee the republic. the political situation changed while allo was in prison with the signing of treaties between the 2 german states in 1972 the 1st phase of relaxation began now west germans could finally visit back east and relatives more easily. and i can it was a sort of diplomatic recognition of east germany. and in a way this also acknowledge the diligent of germany which a 1000000 letter writers had condemned and the british sent their 1st

a macit or so it was of course no longer opportune to continue running a program that was a constant thorn in the side of the east germany's authorities. and hardly any letters were getting through to london the head of the b.b.c.'s german service informed the foreign office that the stars posed to jack had simply become too effective. after almost 25 years unsigned letters was discontinued without warning $974.00 much to the disappointment of its listeners in east germany. if you are came alah and karl-heinz bush a meeting for the 1st time in front of the prison in the city of camden it's once known as karl marx that where life passed 2 different towns. from here west germany paid east germany to release political prisoners an average

of 40000 marks some 20000 euros. for most prisoners who were taken to casper prison it was the last stop before a new life in freedom. the moment the most wonderful moment was when i was released from the citizenship of the german democratic republic. a few years and i foresaw a certificate. that was the most beautiful document that east germany was able to issue of would be of my. child had no idea of any of this when he was transferred from desk now to car marched out carney a few days before he was sent to be sent to the west did he realize that his own country wanted to deport him. we are both t.v. i was given an opportunity. for which others. were risking their lives that i was well aware of that at the time through death side sure goofballs. the young

man from christ found refused to go to the west he started a hunger strike and asked his lawyer for help. they're going to have a lot if i grew up in dr spad. i have my parents grandma and sister there along with my friends this is their 1st. it goes without saying that this intention to deport me runs grossly against my own interests but. this is why i'm asking you to try to do everything. please inform my parents immediately to prevent this these are through for. all of your came alice began a new life in west germany he studied theology and became a pastor. karl-heinz bhatia return to his hometown of christ where the old fart is kept an eye on him until the fall of the berlin wall and repeatedly caused him

trouble in his university korea is a specialist in german studies. but how do they look back at the b.b.c. radio program that played such a big role in their lives today unsigned letters were certainly a comforting anchor for freedom loving people behind the iron curtain but it was also an instrument of state guided anti communist propaganda a borderline case in the truest sense of the word assist. cricketers i don't think that i became a victim in the propaganda war of the 2 systems with prof war or that i was somehow exploited by the editorial staff unsigned letters of the stick ish. enforce i don't know if we influenced people i can't say that. they are seeing the . fish go out we certainly have the intention or at least the welfare state and the

hope that we were doing something good to close quarters. and what happened to austin harrison he retired in 1975 and died 6 years later at the age of just 65. but even after his death march remains as puzzling as it was in his lifetime. case b.b.c. personnel file can't be found. and his will call for an anonymous burial. all that remains of the supposed enemy of the state the tanks in the stasi on congress in. private you're right so us wherever you offer let's have you have on your mind sawing genetics.

in the army of climate change. summit or sit. ups are still people. what ideas do they have for their future. evolution dot com for megacities for the multimedia seems clear cut answer.

it's an ongoing quest story of the future. and the arab spring began in 2011. people stood up against corruption rumors and dictatorship. play the true more security more freedom and more dignity have their hopes been fulfilled 10 years ago after the arab spring. arab ellie and starts june 7th. d.w. . to

see that we news live from berlin thanks u.n. secretary general condemns what he calls the senseless cycle of bloodshed in the middle east but there's still no end. to a new wave of israeli airstrikes hound's targets in gaza city prime minister benjamin netanyahu says the military campaign against.