In Bakhmud, election committee prevented journalist from recording violations

In Bakhmud of Donetsk region, several members of the election commission prevented the journalist for "Vilne Radio" Diana Sharoda, who recorded the fact of violation of the procedure for votes counting by the committee, as the "Vilne Radio" informed. The incident occurred on July 21 at the polling station #140609 on Svoboda Square in center of the city. The journalist recorded that the head of the district election commission Iryna Yablokova signed an empty packing voucher for counted ballot papers for the “Opposition bloc” party. Almost all members of the commission have signed the empty document. The head argued it had been done in order the members of the commission not to wasted its time. Diana Sharodi drew attention of the head of the commission to the violation and asked to give her to take photo of it. Iryna Yablokova asked her not to interfere and not to impede counting. Then the head of the commission submitted to the agenda the issue of expelling the journalist from the premises of the commission, as the journalist would hamper the to work. The commission voted "for", but the journalist refused to leave the polling station. Subsequently, the journalist recorded another violation and made a photo of the ballot paper, in which the names of the five candidates were crossed, and another candidates had a respective mark opposite to his name. So when a journalist has photographed this ballot paper, the commission voted for the second time to drive her out from the premises. Without any corresponding protocol, the journalists was  taken out. The journalist appealed to the police complaining about obstruction to the professional work of journalist. Diana Sharodi told, the police refused to initiate criminal proceedings over her complaint.