Chairman of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NSJU) Sergey Tomilenko took the initiative to create a structure in the country that would monitor the observance of freedom of speech. He emphasized that during the presidency of Petro Poroshenko (2014-2019), the legislation in the field of mass media acted only on paper.

“We need a platform to protect freedom of speech and the rights of journalists. But it should really work. The previous administration of the president by such a Council created only the illusion of freedom of speech. It was used for formal reports - supposedly the authorities are concerned and protects journalists, ”said Tomilenko in an interview with the Ukrainian edition of Strana.ua.

Recall, July 17, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kirill Tymoshenko announced the imminent creation of a council on freedom of speech under the head of state. According to him, this structure is necessary "for dialogue with the media community and the fight against censorship." The council will consist of representatives of leading media outlets, but at the moment, the presidential administration has not announced a list of publications in this category.

“It is expected that the council will help fix and eliminate threats to freedom of speech, manifestations of censorship. Among the priorities is the protection of the right of journalists to the profession. For this, there will be representatives of law enforcement agencies and media lawyers in the Rada, ”Tymoshenko quotes the telegram channel of the Office of Vladimir Zelensky.

  • Entrance blocked by the Ukrainian radicals at the NewsOne TV station in Kiev
  • RIA News

Tomilenko generally approved the initiative of the presidential administration. At the same time, the head of the NSJU noted that the Council on Freedom of Speech would be an effective institution only with the participation of a representative of Zelensky, senior officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the General Prosecutor's Office. Moreover, all meetings, according to Tomilenko, must be held in a public format.

A series of attacks and killings

Currently, Ukraine has several structures that oversee the work of the media and compliance with journalistic standards: the Ministry of Information Policy, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Freedom of Speech and Information Policy and the National Council on Television and Radio Broadcasting.

However, in an interview with RT, political analyst Alexander Dudchak said that the above institutions were not created to protect freedom of speech, but to monitor and censor the media. As the expert is sure, the Council on Freedom of Speech, which is now forming the office of Vladimir Zelensky, will do the same.

Dudchak recalled that after the coup in February 2014, leading Ukrainian media moguls agreed on general rules for editorial policy. In particular, they suggested a rejection of neutral coverage of events related to Russian foreign policy.

“The revolutionary post-maidan authorities almost instantly established new rules for the work of the media. Their essence was reduced to propaganda of terry "patriotism" and Russophobia. Journalists and media who tried to act outside the framework of this ideology were labeled “separatists”, “agents” of the FSB and Putin. Questionnaires of objectionable journalists began to be posted on the Mirotvorets website, ”Dudchak explained.

Nevertheless, Petro Poroshenko has repeatedly argued that the “revolution of dignity” has made Ukraine a truly democratic and free state. Also, the ex-president rejected all charges related to pressure on the media by the authorities.

“I am absolutely convinced that the level of freedom that exists now, including for civil society, this level is unprecedented. Ukraine has never had such a level of freedom in its history, including with regard to journalists, including with respect to public figures, ”Poroshenko said at a press conference in 2017.

Meanwhile, over the past five years in Ukraine there have been several resonant attempts on the lives of journalists. March 18, 2014 deputies of the nationalist party "Freedom" broke into the office of the director of the First State TV Channel of Ukraine Alexander Panteleimonov. He was beaten, called the "agent of Moscow" and forced to write a letter of resignation.

VGTRK correspondent Igor Kornelyuk and video engineer Anton Voloshin, operator of Channel One Anatoly Klyan, photo correspondent of MIA Rossiya Segodnya Andrei Stenin, died during active fighting in the Donbass due to shelling of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Also, several journalists from the Donetsk region who supported the creation of the DPR became victims of the Ukrainian security forces.

On April 16, 2015, a famous TV presenter and writer Oles Buzina was shot dead near his home with a TT pistol. Poroshenko took the investigation of this high-profile crime under personal control, and law enforcement authorities detained two radicals who fought in the ATO: Denis Polishchuk and Andriy Medvedko. As a result of the investigation, both are now free.

On July 20, 2016, in the center of Kiev, a car was blown up by a Russian journalist Pavel Sheremet who moved to Ukraine. In Kiev, he collaborated with the publication Ukrainian Truth, which is headed by his common-law wife, Alena Pritula.

Investigators saw the crime as the “Russian trace”. However, Ukrainian journalists who tried to conduct their own investigation concluded that the customers and organizers of the murder were inside Ukraine. To date, the country's law enforcement authorities do not name the suspects, but report on "serious progress" in the investigation.

  • The place of the murder of Pavel Sheremet in Kiev
  • Reuters
  • © Valentyn Ogirenko

On July 23, 2019, the head of the National Police Sergey Knyazev acquainted Vladimir Zelensky with the results of investigative actions in the case of the Sheremet murder. During the briefing, the official again voiced the version of the “Russian trace”, while clarifying that some of the materials are classified.

In a commentary on RT, Doctor of Political Sciences, professor at Moscow State University, Andrei Manoilo, expressed the view that security officials and, possibly, the current president of Ukraine are aware of who the real customer of the murders of journalists is. However, the expert believes it is naive to expect that the authorities will publish the materials of criminal cases and voice the names of the criminals.

“Zelensky promised to complete the investigation of all the high-profile killings, but in reality this is unlikely. Sane people understand that these atrocities are the work of very influential people. It’s not beneficial for the president to tell the truth; he is taking too much risk. Firstly, Zelensky will destroy the myth of the “Russian trace”, and secondly, he will make many extremely dangerous enemies, ”Manoilo said.

“Threat to independent media”

In a conversation with RT, Alexander Dudchak noted that due to pressure from the authorities and radicals, 112 Ukraine, NEWSONE and Inter television channels are balancing on the verge of closure. According to the expert, these media are attacked for promoting an alternative point of view and a conciliatory tone towards Moscow and the Donbass.

In July, the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine filed criminal charges of treason and terrorist financing against NEWSONE. The reason was a joint project with the TV channel "Russia 1". Journalists of both countries were going to hold a teleconference, but NEWSONE was forced to abandon it, fearing for the lives of their employees - nationalists staged a rally under the windows of a media regulator, shouting threats against journalists.

On the night of July 13, unidentified men fired at the 112 Ukraine office from a grenade launcher. TV channel owner Taras Kozak called the night shelling “another threat to independent media.” The head of the NSJU, Sergey Tomilenko, qualified the incident as “systemic impunity” for previous attacks on journalists and the media.

  • Kirill Vyshinsky at a meeting of the Kiev Court of Appeal
  • RIA News

Currently, the trial in the case of the chief editor of RIA Novosti - Ukraine Kirill Vyshinsky is ongoing in Kiev. The prosecutor’s office accuses the journalist of high treason. Vyshinsky was detained on May 15, 2018 at the request of the SBU. In July, the Podolsky court of Kiev extended his arrest until September 19, 2019.

According to Andrey Manoilo, the court decision indicates that Zelensky’s office does not intend to change the approach to dissenters. The expert is convinced that the administration of the new president will act within the framework of the repressive information policy formed under Poroshenko.

“There is no good reason to argue that under Zelensky the situation with freedom of speech will change for the better. Vyshinsky is being specifically detained. Most likely, Kiev continues this farce with a criminal case in order to make a profitable exchange for itself, ”said Manoilo.

Alexander Dudchak adheres to a similar point of view. The interlocutor of RT noted that in Ukraine there are no prerequisites for positive changes in the field of information policy. And the situation with Vyshinsky, according to the expert, is another confirmation of this.

“The release of Vyshinsky could be a symbolic gesture of the beginning of a new, more sensible course. Of course, there is a shaky hope that the propaganda machine under Zelensky will act a little softer, but serious changes that would ease the pressure on dissidents will not happen. For this to happen, Zelensky needs to break down the entire system of power and abandon the post-maidan ideology. I do not think that he has the resources and political will for this, ”concluded Dudchak.