Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Ukraine to investigate violent threats to Oleh Baturyn

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) calls on the Ukrainian authorities to conduct a "swift and thorough" investigation into violent threats made against journalist Oleh Baturyn after the release of his article about a Kherson Oblast Council deputy, according to the organization's statement.

“Ukrainian authorities must conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the violent threats made against journalist Oleh Baturyn and ensure that he remains safe,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “Baturyn’s work is of public interest and he should be able to do it without fear of reprisal.”

On January 6, the police called Baturyn and said that an investigator would contact him soon, the journalist told CPJ.

“The investigator himself has not contacted me yet. If he doesn’t get in touch tomorrow, I’ll go to the police on Wednesday to get a document on the opening of criminal proceedings,” Baturyn told CPJ on January 8. 

CPJ emailed Saltykov for comment but did not receive a reply.

As the IMI reported, on January 4, journalist Oleh Baturyn from Kakovka filed a statement with the National Police of Ukraine regarding a crime committed under Part 1 of Art. 345-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – threats or violence against a journalist. According to Baturyn, he did this due to an atypical surge in death threats that started after the release of a report saying that a current deputy of the Kherson Oblast Council from the European Solidarity party, Valeriy Saltykov, registered his business with the Russians. Baturyn believes that the wave of death threats is a response to this material specifically.

"Reporters Without Borders" have called on the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs to thoroughly and transparently investigate into the death threats received by journalist Oleh Baturyn.