Chairman of National Union of Journalists of Ukraine: ‘We are glad that there is a bureau in our country that informs the Azerbaijani audience’

The interview of the President of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, Sergiy Tomilenko, to the Eastern European bureau of Report

- How do you assess the activity of the media in the war waged by Russia in Ukraine for more than a year and a half?

- Of course, the information front is very important. Because we see that information is an objective tool that helps Ukrainians to resist and defend against invaders. On the other hand, we see that the information is a propaganda component for Russia in the military campaign. We see that this is the same for them in Ukraine, the Caucasus and other places. Russia is campaigning to occupy the territories of other countries. Today, we believe that Ukraine is among the democratic countries and among the developed countries. Because we are open enough in the field of information, and accordingly, journalists cover the current war crimes of Russia. Therefore, we gain great solidarity. Of course, there are also difficulties for journalists in Ukraine. One of them is the security issue, because almost every journalist today is a war journalist who puts himself/herself at risk. That's why we want to protect them with bulletproof vests, helmets, and first aid kits. Journalists should have safer working conditions. We also conduct seminars and trainings for this purpose. We know that it is very difficult for journalists because of the great economic crisis. The war destroyed the advertising market, the income of the population. It means economic stagnation for journalists. In other words, journalists voluntarily do good work, cover and film, but they still need economic support for the stability of the media and for people to get information.

- How many editorial offices in Ukraine suspended its operations during the war due to the difficulties we listed?

- About a third of the news outlets were closed, mostly in the regions. These happened due to the invasion, war, and economic factors against our country. The number of people working in the field of press also decreased. Hundreds of journalists quit their jobs to volunteer or join the army.

- How many journalists have died in Ukraine since the beginning of the war?

- Unfortunately, more than 70 media workers and journalists were killed. However, among these 70, we distinguish 3 categories: 15 journalists who died while performing their professional duty in Crimea, and the other 2 groups are victims in journalistic activities and civil life. For example, among those killed in Mariupol at that time were journalists who were soldiers mobilized into the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and we keep this list with us. If it were not for this terrible war, these journalists and media workers would continue their work.

- Are the 70 killed only Ukrainian journalists?

- No, among these 70 people there are also foreign journalists: media representatives from Lithuania, USA, France, Great Britain also died in Ukraine. Therefore, we offer our condolences to the families of the victims.

- Many representatives of the world press, including us, have been trying to show the truth here since the first day of the war. How do you assess the conditions created in your country for foreign journalists?

- Of course, today the government of Ukraine and the armed forces are trying to simplify the activity of journalism against the background of the war. Because Ukraine gets great support and solidarity through international media coverage. As Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviychuk has emphasized, it was precisely after the atrocities in Bucha and Irpen that were shown in the international media that there was a serious turning point in the exposure of Russian evil. Tens of thousands of journalists work in Ukraine, of course, there are challenges, so we see how difficult it is. At the same time, journalists themselves do not directly complain about bans and persecutions. Of course, if someone is not a media worker and has ties with Russia, special services check it. It is being investigated whether they cooperated with the terrorist country's media. For example, a reporter working for a Communist-French magazine, as well as a Spanish journalist who previously directed a Spanish-Russian propaganda tape, were rejected for this reason. We believe that this is fair because they have been a tool of Russian propaganda, so they are not trusted. By the way, we are glad that a journalist from Azerbaijan works in Ukraine, which means that there is a permanent office and representative office that directly informs the Azerbaijani audience about important events.

- A few days ago, the Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Maliar claimed that after the foreign press (it seems that they were journalists from the US) shot and broadcast the footage, the enemy used these images to attack a brigade of the Ukrainian army. Then it was reported that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Valerii Zaluzhnyi restricts the visit of foreign journalists to the frontline. Do you think journalists are really guilty in this matter?

- I would like to emphasize that this news really raised a lot of questions, at the same time, we as the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine prepared a request to the Headquarters. The situation was resolved within 3 days after the inquiry, and official information was given that the standard work of the press and the standard entry procedure to those areas were restored. Today there is an explanation that there is a technical disagreement on this issue. At the same time, I talked about it with the deputy minister. But I still think that in this great war, Russia has more means of obtaining information and intelligence. Therefore, in my opinion, many verification-type measures do not mean any negative attitude towards journalism.

- Is it possible that local press officers are not doing enough professional work in this matter, since foreign journalists who come to Ukraine are journalists who have enough experience and have covered other wars before?

- The same question is currently relevant in the network of press services in Ukraine. As a union of journalists, we are in touch with press secretaries and the Armed Forces of Ukraine. For the best organization, we want to hold trainings in which journalists will participate together with press secretaries. We want journalists to be seen not as threats, but as professionals who want to convey the truth to their audience. Therefore, as a union, we want to involve other journalists to pass on this experience to others. In this war, Ukraine should not bear the name of the same experience as Russia. Because Russia is an evil empire with a propaganda machine. We should be a part of the developed world, in which freedom of speech and respect for journalists is one of the main features.

- By the way, recently, we have been witnessing disagreements between some local officials and foreign journalists in Kyiv, and restrictions on journalists. If we take into account that freedom of speech and legal freedom are the main criteria, and the current war is for the sake of free Ukraine, what can be the result of such cases? What does the union you lead propose in this regard?

- We, as the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, naturally want to organize mutual meetings. We need officials who can understand journalists. It is impossible to limit information, give interviews and information to one part and not give it to another. We are ready to invite officials to our platform to understand the standards and get feedback from the journalistic community. I think that if there is a conflict with journalists, accordingly, such a situation will create a bad political culture that will not allow us to build our future. If we do not criticize the shortcomings, then we cannot build the country that is now fighting at the front.