Journalists backed Alasania and initiated movement against censorship

The independent journalists expressed their support to Zurab Alasania dismissed from the position of the Chairman of the Board of the Public television and radio company of Ukraine (NSTU). They initiated a movement of counteraction to censorship “Initiative 34”, as to The Radio Free Europe. “We, the undersigned, consider the measures taken by the Supervisory council of the Public television are a straight demonstration of censorship and extremely dangerous precedent for Ukraine”, as it is said in the open letter signed by the journalists. The journalists urged to “revoke immediately the results of voting and to dismiss the Supervisory council in a current composition which by its doing imperiled the reform of public broadcasting in Ukraine and made a dangerous precedent of dismissal of the head of an independent institution due to some political interests”. The signatories claimed the decision to dismiss Zurab Alasania from office is inadmissible as it has been taken by the mean of a “non-transparent secret ballot, with an obvious breach to the procedure, to the spirit of the law on public broadcasting, to the functions of the Supervisory council and common sense”. This vote is a “odious manifestation of cowardice and servile flattery”. “The part of reclamations toward Alasania that was made public, unfortunately, does not leave any doubts this decision was political one and was adopted in order to please to the power. Any mistake that could be made Alasania and his team in their work does not justify his dismissal in a hectic and responsible political period, two months before the presidential election”, it is said in the open letter. Thus, the journalists claimed to launch an “Initiative 34” (the 34 Article of the Constitution of Ukraine which is to guarantee the everyone’s right to freedom of thought and speech, and to the free expression of his or her views and beliefs). Among the signatories are the journalists who are participants of the well-known movement “Stop censorship!” which had been opposed to pressure onto press freedom in the times of presidency of Viktor Yanukovych. Among the signatories are: Kateryna Gorchynska, Oleksiy Matsuka, Serghiy Andrushko, Natalka Sedletska, Mykhaylo Tkach, Oleksandr Chornovalov, Kateryna Kaplyuk, Olena Prytula, Evhen Buderatsky, Roman Romanyuk, Natalia Sudakova, Kateryna Sergatskova, Tetyana Peklun, Denis Bigus, Kristyna Berdynskykh, Olga Rudenko, Kira Tolstyakova, Vasleria Ehoshyna, Anna Babinets, Daryna Shevchenko, Evhenia Motorevska, Kateryna Lykhoglyad, Nastya Stanko, Natalya Gumenyuk, Oleg Novikov, Alisa Yurchenko, Dmytro Denkov, Iryna Andreytsiv, Alina Polyakova, Serhiy Sydorenko, Maksym Savchuk, Fedir Popadyuk, Khrystyna Bondareva, Danylo Mokryk, Anatoliy Martsynovsky, Kateryna Gladka, Andriy Yanytsky, Tetyana Kozak, Dmytro Bobrytsky, Ivan Verstuk, Natalka Rychkova, Kateryna Shapoval, Nataliya Minyaylo, Yuriy Butusov, Natalya Gryvnyak, Inna Borzylo, Oleksander Chekmyshev.