Freedom of Speech Barometer for December 2022

In December, IMI experts recorded nine crimes against freedom of speech in Ukraine. Five of them were committed by Russia against Ukrainian media and journalists.

The Russian crimes include firing at and wounding journalists, as well as cyber crimes, brand theft, and creating fake clones of local publications to spread aggressive Russian propaganda.

At the same time, IMI recorded four cases of freedom of speech violation for which Ukrainian citizens are responsible. These are cases of obstruction and legal pressure.

These are the monitoring data of the Institute of Mass Information.

This month, "Suspilne Kherson" journalist Anton Kolomiets was killed on December 20 while defending Ukraine on the front line of the war with Russia. He joined the UAF on October 17, made his oath on November 11. Before enlisting, he worked as a presenter and director on the "Skifiya" TV channel, and later on Suspilne. For many years, he had been a weatherman. He was also the director of the "Start Your Morning With Us" program.

According to IMI, Anton Kolomiets is the 43rd media worker who died as a result of Russian aggression in Ukraine. Eight of those died in the line of duty as journalists, 35 were killed as combatants or by Russian shelling, not while carrying out their journalistic duties.

On December 19, Italian journalists came under Russian fire in Kherson; reporter Claudio Locatelli was injured as a result. Their car was also damaged. The journalists said said their vehicle had been targeted "intentionally". "If I had opened the door I would have lost a leg or worse. The car is well flagged (as carrying journalists). The attack against us, considering the place and the dynamics, was intentional. The fire came from the riverbank on the other side of the Dnieper, where the Russian army is," the journalist said.

In Donetsk oblast, Fakty ICTV and Telebachennya Toronto filming crews came under Russian fire.

As Fakty ICTV special correspondent Kostyantyn Melnykov told IMI, they were working with the military, filming the work of the infantry and the reinforcing of our positions. He added that while they were working, the enemy probably spotted them from a drone, as they were fired upon a few minutes later. The journalists were not injured, but, Kostyantyn said, their car was damaged. Kostyantyn Melnykov does not rule out that the Russian military knew that they were firing at journalists.

"Telebachennya Toronto" journalist Alina Sheremeta and cameraman Oleh Arkhangorodsky came under fire while working on a report about the Karpatska Sich Battalion, about the work of tankmen and aerial scouts.

In Snigurivka town (Mykolaiv oblast), which had been under Russian occupation since March to November, the invaders were distributing a clone of the locally known newspaper "Ridne Prybuzhzhia". The Russians used the layout, typeface, and name of the regional newspaper, having translated it into Russian – "Rodnoe Pribuzhye". Editor-in-chief Tetyana Fabrykova told IMI that the Russians created a clone of "Ridne Prybuzhzhia" in order to exploit the newspaper's reputation to promote pro-Russian propaganda among the residents of Mykolaiv oblast.

The cyber crimes recorded by IMI include Facebook taking down an article by "Poltavska Khvylia" about a Ukrainian serviceman due to bots mass flagging the post. "Poltavska Khvylia" editor-in-chief Vitaly Ulybin says that their Facebook post about a Ukrainian defender who adjusts the fire of the Ukrainian artillery has been removed. He believes it is due to bots mass flagging the post. As Vitaly Ulybin explained, Facebook is blocking the post because of the video that it contains. "In the video, an air reconnaissance commander talks about how they work, what systems they use. Most likely, it is bots that are being used to take it down. Facebook itself allowed this video and even allowed it to be promoted through advertising. But time and again throughought the day, the advertising has been canceled, and the post has been taken down," said the editor.

The freedom of speech situation in Ukraine for which the Ukrainian side is responsible

In December, IMI recorded four cases of freedom of speech violations by the Ukrainian side. These are instances of obstruction and legal pressure. Such cases were recorded in Kyiv, Lutsk, Kharkiv, and Rivne oblast.

In the Solomyansky District Court of Kyiv, the court's spokeswoman Alyona Petukhova tore up "Watchers" journalist Alina Kondratenko's request for access to an open court session which was supposed to consider a petition regarding the measure of restraint against one of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra priests, suspected of justifying the Russian aggression. As Alina pointed out, the spokeswoman printed out her petition, which had been sent by email in advance, and said that it should have an electronic signature. The journalist clarified that that she had attended meetings in this court before, sending requests by email without a signature, and the court's staff had no questions. The journalist added that she did sign the printed request, which was later torn up by the spokeswoman, with a pen. In the end, the journalist was allowed to attend the court session, as she wrote a new request on the spot.

In Lutsk, the "Konkurent TV" filming crew wanted to interview the dean of a new UOC MP church, but was chased away. The news about the consecration of a new church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate near the Lutsk bearing factory caused a stir among the locals. The journalists decided to visit the church to learn more.

"Chetverta Vlada" journalists were not allowed to enter the Zdolbuniv Lyceum No. 6, allegedly due to martial law. The filming crew was only allowed in after calling the police; the law enforcemers talked to the school's employees. The journalists were inspecting the state of the premises at Zdolbuniv Lyceum No. 6 in terms of studying conditions.

RUSSIA'S CRIMES

Journalists wounded – 1

1. Italian journalists come under fire in Kherson

20.12.2022 Italian journalists Claudio Locatelli and Niccolò Celesti came under Russian fire in Kherson on December 19, ANSA reports. 

They said their vehicle had been targetted "intentionally" but they had managed to get away safely.

One projectile "damaged the car, we remained trapped under fire before succeeding in getting away safely, I lost some blood but the wound is slight," said reporter Claudio Locatelli in a video with colleague Niccolò Celesti.

"If I had opened the door I would have lost a leg or worse. The car is well flagged (as carrying journalists). The attack against us, considering the place and the dynamics, was intentional. The fire came from the riverbank on the other side of the Dnieper, where the Russian army is," the journalist said.

Claudio Locatelli posted the video of the shelling on Facebook. The attack took place on December 19. The journalists said his ear has been injured by window shards.

As IMI reported, 21-year-old Dmytro Sydorko, who ran the "Ukrainsky Nastup" Telegram channel, died in a battle with the Russian occupiers near Bakhmut.

Firing at journalists – 2

1. Fakty ICTV filming crew comes under fire near Bakhmut

05.12.2022 The Fakty ICTV filming crew (special correspondent Kostyantyn Melnykov and cameraman Dmytro Matvienko) came under Russian fire on December 5 near Kurdyumivka village, Bakhmut district, Donetsk oblast. Kostyantyn Melnykov reported this to IMI.

According to him, they were working with the military, filming the work of the infantry and the reinforcing of our positions. He added that while they were working, the enemy probably spotted them from a drone, as they were fired upon a few minutes later. Other filming crews included Suspilne and Sky News.

The journalists were not injured, but, Kostyantyn said, their car was damaged. "The shock wave and fragments knocked out the rear window, the side passenger window behind the driver, damaged the windshield. The fragments pierced the car's body," the journalist said.

Kostyantyn Melnykov does not rule out that the Russian military knew that they were firing at journalists. "Hard to say whether it was deliberate, we were working with the military, after all. But all media representatives had the press stickers our on body armor and helmets. And considering that we were most likely spotted from a drone, they knew they were shooting at journalists," he said.

The journalists waited out the shelling in a shelter and left the military positions as soon as the enemy stopped firing.

2. "Telebachennya Toronto" filming crew comes under fire while working in Donetsk oblast

26.12.2022 "Telebachennya Toronto" journalist Alina Sheremeta and cameraman Oleh Arkhangorodsky came under fire while working in Donetsk oblast.

The media outlet issued a report about this.

The crew was working on a report about the Karpatska Sich Battalion, about the work of tankmen and aerial scouts, recording interviews with foreign fighters and medics setting out to the battlefield.

In her comment to an IMI representative, Alina Sheremeta noted that she does not think the shelling was because the Russians had noticed the journalists.

"The troops were returning from their positions and the enemy was firing at a military AFV," the journalist said.

As IMI reported, on November 17, Facebook deleted the "Telebachennya Toronto" page for alleged "hate speech" in their video about prominent Ukrainian historian Volodymyr Antonovych. A few days later, the "Telebachennya Toronto" Facebook page was restored.

Cyber crimes – 1

1. "Poltavska Khvylia" says Facebook bots are mass flagging their post about a serviceman

19.12.2022 "Poltavska Khvylia" editor-in-chief Vitaly Ulybin says that their Facebook post about a Ukrainian defender who adjusts the fire of the Ukrainian artillery has been removed. He believes it is due to bots mass flagging the post.

Ulybin wrote about this on his Facebook page and informed the IMI representative in Poltava oblast.

As Vitaly Ulybin explained, Facebook is blocking the post because of the video that it contains.

"In the video, an air reconnaissance commander talks about how they work, what systems they use. Most likely, it is bots that are being used to take it down. Facebook itself allowed this video and even allowed it to be promoted through advertising. But time and again throughought the day, the advertising has been canceled, and the post has been taken down," said the editor.

Ulybin noted that the editors had decided to embed the video into the article and publish it on his Facebook page to check whether the issue had to do with Facebook's algorithms.

"But that post was also taken down. They said it violates their Community Guidelines. Facebook is blocking the article because of the video in it," said the "Poltavska Khvylia" editor-in-chief.

"Facebook doesn't have the content analysis capacity to do an in-depth check of the context of a YouTube video embedded in an article. Our theory about bots is also supported by the fact that the post on my page suddenly gained a large outreach – 112,000 people. However, it was not reflected in likes, reposts and comments. So, these were just some random accounts that did not interact with the post, but simply flagged," noted Vitaliy Ulybin.

It will be recalled that on July 27, 2022, "Poltavska Khvylia" received a letter from Roskomnadzor with a demand to remove the news item with a tutorial for making a Molotov cocktail and it was reported that the access to the resource has been restricted in russia. The editors responded with a picture in which the demands of the russian federation were being "sent along the course of the russian warship."

In September, "Poltavska Khvylia" received an email from Roskomnadzor with a demand to delete a news article "How to burn an occupier: a recipe for a Molotov cocktail." If was not taken down, the access to the website in russia would be restricted.

Disabling Ukrainian broadcasting and streaming Russian propaganda instead – 1

1. In Mykolaiv oblast, the occupiers issued a clone of a local newspaper to promote their propaganda

19.12.2022 In Snigurivka town (Mykolaiv oblast), which had been under Russian occupation since March to November, the invaders were distributing a clone of the locally known newspaper "Ridne Prybuzhzhia". This was reported by the IMI representative in Mykolaiv oblast.

The Russians used the layout, typeface, and name of the regional newspaper, having translated it into Russian – "Rodnoe Pribuzhye".

The pro-Russian "Rodnoe Pribuzhye" (with the only issue dated September 23) was intented to promote a pseudo-referendum on the accession of Kherson oblast and Snigurivka, Mykolayiv oblast, to Russia. The newspaper's source data indicate that it was printed in Kherson oblast with a print run of 10,000 copies. There is no other information neither on the publication nor the person responsible for the issue.

The newspaper "Ridne Prybuzhzhia" was founded in 1991 as Mykolaiv oblast's official printed publication. In 2019, the newspaper has been denationalized, and is currently a private enterprise headed by editor-in-chief Tetyana Fabrykova. Before the start of the full-scale war, the newspaper used to print three issues a week with a print run of about 10,000 copies and was distributed throughout Mykolaiv oblast.

As editor-in-chief Tetyana Fabrykova told IMI, the newspaper's last issue was published on February 24, 2022; after that, it had to suspend its operation due to the hostilities. As of December, the publication has not resumed its work because of financial difficulties, the energy situation in Ukraine, and the journalists being physically absent from Mykolaiv, which remains a front-line city in the full-scale invasion.

Tetyana Fabrykova is outraged by the fact that the Russians created a clone of "Ridne Prybuzhzhia" in order to exploit the newspaper's reputation to promote pro-Russian propaganda among the residents of Mykolaiv oblast.

She said that "Ridne Prybuzhzhya" had been printed in Kherson for the last few years. Tetyana Fabrykova believes that the occupiers were able to gain access to the newspaper's files stored in the printing house and used them to create the clone.

"I was not aware of this situation, I am outraged by the fact that they used our logo, that they would issue such a thing. When the hostilities started in Mykolaiv oblast, we stopped printing the newspaper, because, first, we were doing it in Kherson, the printing press was there... Mykolaiv newspapers are now gradually resuming their work, in particular 'Yuzhnaya Pravda' and 'Vechirniy Mykolaiv', but we are not prepared to release another issue yet, because our journalists are not in Mykolaiv yet. I think that as soon as our power grid is stabilized, we will of course resume our work. We will fulfill all our obligations to our subscribers. Because we are almost a year behind. We only fulfilled our obligations to subscribers for January – February. This issue that you discovered is a scam, they know that such a newspaper existed, so they made use of it," said Tetyana Fabrykova.

Crimea – 2

1. Crimean occupation court sentences journalist Iryna Danilovych to seven years in prison

28.12.2022 The occupation court of Feodosia, Crimea, sentenced citizen journalist and human rights activist Iryna Danilovych to seven years in prison.

An IMI representative learned about this from her own sources.

Iryna Danilovych was sentenced to seven years in a general regime colony and a fine of 50,000 rubles on the charges of illegal storage and manufacture of explosives under Part 1 of Art. 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

As reported by the Crimean Human Rights Group, the part about the purchase and storage has been removed from the indictment, and only the carge of carrying explosives remained.

The "judge" decided that there was no inadmissible evidence in the case, and that Danilovych's guilt was fully proven. The prison term will be counted from the day she was detained – April 29.

As IMI reported, on August 29, in the russian-controlled Feodosia city court, a trial on merits of the case of citizen journalist Iryna Danylovych, who is accused of illegally storing explosives in a glasses case, has begun. The FSB accuses her of making an explosive device from an explosive substance and striking elements (medical needles) and keeping it on her person.

Iryna Danilovych was detained on April 29 in the occupied Crimea. She was detained on her way from work on the road from Koktebel to Feodosia. Her house in Vladislavivka village was searched, her phone and laptop were seized.

In late July, Danilovych said that officers of the Federal Security Service of the russian federation (FSB) beat her and continue to pressure her.

Iryna Danilovych worked as a nurse, and was also a citizen journalist, covering the problems of the health care system in Crimea and sharing information about the war in Ukraine. Before the war, Danilovych cooperated with several media and human rights initiatives (InZhyr-Media, Crimean Trial) and ran her own project, Crimean Medicine Unwrapped, where she wrote about the rights of healthcare professionals.

On November 15, human rights and media organizations issued a statement about the politically motivated trial against citizen journalist Iryna Danilovych, which is ongoing in occupied Crimea.

On November 22, Iryna Danolovych's letter where she spoke about the icreasing pressure from the detention center's administration became public.

On November 30, during a hearing at the Russian-controlled Feodosia city court, Danilovych said that FSB officers had beaten and strangled her.

2. Russian court sentences Crimean journalist Ernes Ametov to 11 years in prison

29.12.2022 The re-trial against citizen journalist Ernes Ametov ended with Russia's Southern District Military Court, Rostov-on-Don, sentencing the accused to 11 years in a high-security prison.

This was reported by the public association "Crimean Solidarity".

Upon his release, Ametov will be banned from leaving Crimea, organizing and participating in public events, changing his place of residence or stay without the approval of the Russian FPS, and leaving the house from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. He will also be required to check in at a specified state body twice a month.

"I am a believer and I accept my fate. I want to say that if what is happening here was not Lord's will, it would not have happened. Therefore, it is His will. I obey; any sentence of Yours will be just. But I reject the false accusations against me, and I want to say: today you make your judgement, and may Lord make His. Thank you," Ametov said in his last statement.

On December 27, the Russian prosecution demanded 18 years and 6 months of imprisonment for Ernes Ametov.

According to "Graty", on October 12, 2017, officers of the Russian FSB detained and then arrested Timur Ibragimov, Marlen (Suleiman) Asanov, Memet Belyalov, Seyran Saliyev, Server Zekiryaev and Ernes Ametov. All of them are members of "Crimean Solidarity" – an association of lawyers, relatives of political prisoners, and activists which provides assistance to Crimeans who have been persecuted for political or religious reasons.

Edem Smailov and "Crimean Solidarity" coordinator Server Mustafayev were detained and arrested later – on May 22, 2018.

According to the investigation, all the detainees were members of a cell in the Islamic party "Hizb ut-Tahrir", which has been banned in Russia in 2003, but operates freely in Ukraine and most European countries. Marlen Asanov, Timur Ibragimov, and Memet Belyalov stand accused of "organizing the activities of a terrorist organization" (Part 1 of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). The prescribed penalty ranges from 15 years in prison to a life sentence.

The other five men are accused of participating in a terrorist organization (Part 2 of the same Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code of Russia) with a possible penalty of 10 to 15 years in prison. All eight are also being accused of preparing a violent coup (Part 1 of Article 30, Article 278 of the Criminal Code of Russia).

All defendants plead not guilty of terrorism and say they are being persecuted on political and religious grounds.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH SITUATION IN UKRAINE FOR WHICH UKRAINIAN CITIZENS ARE RESPONSIBLE

Physical aggression

Obstruction of legal journalistic work – 3

1. Kyiv court speaker tears a journalist's request for attending a hearing against a Lavra priest

02.12.2022 "Watchers" journalist Alina Kondratenko reported that the spokeswoman of the Solomyansky District Court of Kyiv, Alyona Petukhova, tore up her request for access to an open court session in front of her. The incident happened on December 2, Alina Kondratenko told IMI.

According to the journalist, she came to attend the court hearing which was supposed to consider a petition regarding the measure of restraint against one of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra priests, suspected of justifying the Russian aggression.

As Alina pointed out, the spokeswoman printed out her petition, which had been sent by email in advance, and said that it should have an electronic signature. The journalist clarified that that she had attended meetings in this court before, sending requests by email without a signature, and the court's staff had no questions.

"I walked into the court, the spokeswoman called me to the main office. And there she had my request printed out and already on the table. She asks: 'Why didn't you think of putting an electronic signature on it?' I asked where the need for an electronic signature on a mass media request was regulated (since there was no such requirement before). The spokeswoman lost her temper and tore the request into small pieces in front of me. I immediately started recording it on my phone, asking: 'Why did you tear up my request?' She said that there had been no request and she did not tear anything," said Alina Kondratenko.

The journalist added that she had signed the printed request, which was torn up by the spokeswoman, with a pen.

After that, Kondratenko said, the court sent a letter to her email address. It said that her request did not contain the necessary elements, such as an electronic signature, and for the court to review it, it has to be properly made.

"Emails which have no return address, where the sender's address is unknown, and which contain no signature by which the sender could be identified are not subject to processing. Opening files attached to such emails is strictly prohibited. Therefore, your electronic message does not constitute a document of any kind (application, petition, request, etc.), nor does it have any document that contains the above-mentioned details attached to it. Thus, in order for the court to accept your application for registration and consideration, we ask that you send it in a proper form," the court's letter said.

In the end, the journalist was allowed to attend the court session, as she wrote a new request on the spot.

In her comment to the IMI representative, the Solomyansky District Court spokeswoman, Alyona Petukhova, explained that she had torn up the printed request because it did not have an electronic signature and did not meet the legal requirements due to this. After the journalist wrote a new request by hand on a new piece of paper and put her signature on it, it was granted.

IMI lawyer Roman Holovenko noted that free listeners, including journalists, do not need to submit a request for attending an open court session in a criminal trial. According to Part 2 of Article 27 of the Criminal Procedure Code, during quarantine, the court can limit access to a hearing "if participation in the hearing would pose a threat to a person'e life or health," but again, requests have nothing to do with this. According to him, the CPC does not regulate the status of a free listener at all; such listeners are not mentioned among the participants in the process (see paragraph 5 of the code in particular), and are not obligated to submit any requests, even on filming or broadcasting the hearing, which requires a permission from the court.

2. New UOC MP church in Lutsk refuses to let journalists in

19.12.2022 In Lutsk, the "Konkurent TV" filming crew wanted to interview the dean of a new UOC MP church, but was chased away. This is reported by "Konkurent" news agency.

According to the publication, news about the consecration of a new church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate near the Lutsk bearing factory caused a stir among the locals. The journalists decided to visit the church to learn more.

As Oleksandra Kurteyeva, director of "Konkurent TV", told the IMI representative, the incident happened to journalist Kateryna Vozniak on December 19.

"As the journalists arrived, some people, including the dean, ran out towards them. Despite the fact that the media workers stood outside the church's premises, these people immediately started calling and shouting at them in an abusive manner – without stopping to figure out who they were and why had come," Oleksandra Kurteyeva said.

"The woman was aggressively waving her hands and shouting: 'Get out of here!' 'What do you want here!' 'Just look at the bastartds,' 'Turn off the camera,' meanwhile the man was filming everything with his phone and even said that he had written down the numbers on the license plates of the journalists' cars," she added.

Journalists did not have a chance to talk to the church's dean. Oleksandra Kurteyeva noted that no one in the film crew was injured, so they did not call the police.

3. "Chetverta Vlada" journalists only allowed to enter a school after calling the police

27.12.2022 "Chetverta Vlada" were not allowed to enter Zdolbuniv Lyceum No. 6, allegedly due to martial law. The filming crew was only allowed in after calling the police; the law enforcemers talked to the school's employees, reports "Chetverta Vlada".

The journalists were inspecting the state of the premises at Zdolbuniv Lyceum No. 6. A student's mother told the reporters that the children study in inappropriate conditions, because the walls of the school's corridors are wet and moldy. According to the mother, the local authorities have ignored this issue for many years, so she wanted the journalists' help to draw attention to this problem.

Instead, the head of the humanitarian affairs department at the Zdolbuniv City Council, Ihor Antoniuk, told the reporters that the problem at the school had already been resolved. When the journalists wanted to see the state of the building with their own eyes, the official said that the mold had already been removed, and that during martial law, no one, not even parents, were allowed to enter the school, as the building was a part of critical infrastructure.

"We were not allowed inside on Ihor Antoniuk's orders. We warned him, we warned the principal that we consider this to be an obstruction to journalistic activity. At first, acting principal Tetyana Hmyrak refused to let us in. Then we called the police. A janitor didn't let us in even with the police. But the police got in, explained everything to the school officials, and they let us in," said "Chetverta Vlada" journalist Olha Pidhorodetska.

Legal pressure – 1

1. Kharkiv Oblast Council chairwoman files a complaint against a journalist with the SBU

29.12.2022 The head of the Kharkiv Oblast Council, Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko, wrote a statement to the SBU demanding to check the publications of "Dumka" editor-in-chief Yuriy Larin. The official accuses him of "unfounded criticism".

"Dumka" reported this on its website on December 28, according to Suspilne.

As "Dumka" notes, the head of the oblast council believes that the criticism expressed in the publication's articles is "playing along with the aggressor and openly aiding the enemy." The statement with the SBU was filed in early December.

According to the publication, Yehorova-Lutsenko has grievances with five articles by Yuri Larin which mention that:

• The Oblast Council chairwoman approved a vacation and financial aid to Volodymyr Svyatash, a former Oblast Council deputy and head of a communal enterprise. The article includes a photo of the document signed by the Oblast Council chairwoman. Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko says that the company did not give approval for Svyatash's vacation.
• Kharkiv Oblast Council deputies were recommended to srip the former head of the Kharkiv branch of the OPFL, Ihor Rainin, and Kharkiv Oblast Council deputy from the Kernes Bloc, Volodymyr Svyatash, of the Honorary Citizen title and the stipend. Yehorova-Lutsenko says that the publication's statement is "somewhat" untrue.
• The Kharkiv Oblast Territorial Election Commission can not convene due to martial law. The head of the regional council considers this statement strange, since there is no citation.
• During the December 1 session, the deputies will be proposed to award honorary titles to some Kharkiv citizens, in particular to Kernes Bloc representative and former Party of Regions member, Oleh Karatumanov. The head of the Oblast Council says that this information is not true.
• The articles about the former deputy head of the Kharkiv Oblast Administration for Medical Affairs, Mykhailo Chernyak, criticizing the Kharkiv Oblast Council's draft decision regarding the unification of infectious diseases wards for adults and children. This information seemed suspicious to Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko.

Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko confirmed to Suspilne Kharkiv that she had filed a statement to the SBU. She believes that "Dumka" was covering her work in a negative way and stresses that it may hold pro-Russian views.

"I can confirm that Yuriy Larin is definitely on someone's payroll. I can tell that the intention in his recent activities has been to discredit me as a person and as the chairwoman of the oblast council," said Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko. "It was me who initiated the declaration of the Russian Federation an aggressor country, the dismissal of my deputy, Maloyanovy, the renaming of the Pushkin Theater, and stripping Rainin and Svyatash of the Honorary Citizen title. It all cost me a lot of nerves."

"He never waits for a comment. We had a blackout when he was inquiring about Svyatash, and I said that I would give a comment in the morning. But the day before the session, he had already written that I approved his (Svyatash's – Ed.) vacation. He wrote some nonesense about the honorable Kharkiv citizens, that we were allegedly trying to hide something," said the head of the Oblast Council.

According to Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko, Volodymyr Svyatash is currently not on vacation and is not receiving financial assistance.

"This situation is very upsetting to me. I have always been open, gave comments, did not hide anything. I did not understand his position towards the Oblast Council," said Tetyana-Ehorova Lutsenko.

The Oblast Council chairwoman denies the information reported in another article by the publication as well.

"Say, he writes that we do not have the money for the adopted program on Territorial Defense. But that is not true. The program was developed by the military administration. Larin does not mention our intention to allocate the funds gradually over the course of three years. He paints me in a negative light, implying that I am to blame for the lack of money. I think this information is biased. In my opinion, he was paid for this criticism," Yehorova-Lutsenko believes.

She added that she appealed to the special services "with a request to check who is behind him, whether perhaps he wants to undermine my authority or destabilize the situation." "I believe that Mr. Larin should be held accountable for his words. If he works on someone's orders and has some mission regarding me, I don't want to let it slide and watch him pour dirt on me and even choose my worst photos to publish," said the head of the Oblast Council.

"Dumka" reports that editor-in-chief Yuriy Larin has already provided an explanation to law enforcers regarding Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko's accusations. The publication listed these explanations in the order of the listed claims.

• As of December 28, none of the leaders or deputies of the Oblast Council denied the authenticity of the document regarding the Oblast Council approving Volodymyr Svyatash's vacation. The day after the document was published, Yehorova-Lutsenko reported: "Regarding the letter: there are some legal procedural issues to prevent the Oblast Council's actions from possibly being challenged in court," which effectively confirmed that the document was genuine.
• According to the minutes of the Expert Council's meeting, its members directly admitted that there were grounds for stripping Rainin and Svyatash of the "Honorary Citizen of Kharkiv Oblast" title. The minutes were sent to the Kharkiv Oblast Council Commission as a recommendation.
• The information about Kharkiv Regional Territorial Election Commission being unable to convene is a news item, presented as a fact, without interpretation, and it has been indicated the information was not official, but a report from a source.
• All draft decisions of the Kharkiv Oblast Council are publicly available in the Regulatory Documents Database of the Kharkiv Oblast Council and are not classified.
• Mykhailo Chernyak's criticism of the draft decision of the Kharkiv Oblast Council's draft decision regarding the unification of infectious diseases wards for adults and children is Chernyak's personal opinion, not the editors' position. The article contains no comments or interpretations. The statements were given verbatim.

The editors of "Dumka" note that they consider Tetyana Yehorova-Lutsenko's statement an attempt to put pressure on the journalist and that they reserve the right to appeal to law enforcers and international organizations for support.

In his comment to Suspilne Kharkiv, Yuriy Larin noted that his position has been explained in the publication. Currently, the journalist is waiting for the conclusions of the SBU inspection.