The online news outlet Pershyi Kryvorizkyi says that Kryvyi Rih City Council official Viktoria Samoylenko (Tretyak) obstructed the work of their journalist Yelyzaveta Makarcheva at a Zhadan i Sobaky concert in Khartia Hub on 2 September. The media outlet reported on the incident on 3 September; their crew was present at the event.
According to the news outlet, a deputy representing the Vilkul Bloc “Ukrainian Perspective” went on stage during the band’s performance to make a speech about the Khartia Hub opening and expressed her regret that Oleksandr Vilkul, son of the acting mayor of Kryvyi Rih who calls himself the chair of the City Defense Council, was absent at the concert.
The news outlet learned by submitting a query that the Kryvyi Rih City Council’s executive committee had created the City Defense Council on 25 February 2022 and appointed Oleksandr Vilkul as chair. Pershyi Kryvorizkyi reports that it is unclear who nominated him or whether there was a vote, and that there is no document outlining the Council’s composition or tasks.
The concertgoers responded to the speech by chanting “Shame!”
After the speech, Viktoria Tretyak, who calls herself the deputy chair of the Kryvyi Rih Defense Council, walked to the part of the makeshift stage where reporters stood and began to shove a Pershyi Kryvorizkyi journalist and interfere with her work.
“As I was filming, I was moving around to get good shots, and, apperently, got in the way of Viktoria’s watching the concert. She pushed me away several times, grabing me by the bag, the arms, the torso. She said, ‘How dare you?’ and then took a picture of me.
“I was displeased, because I was just doing my job. I didn’t want a conflict, because I usually prefer to solve various situations not with brawls but with words. I just wanted to finish my work at the concert and listen to the songs. I felt injustice and disgust,” said Yelyzaveta.
The news outlet considers the official’s actions as pressure on the media and insists on a review of her behavior at the standing commission on legality, law and order, deputies’ work, regulations, ethics, and freedom of speech.
Pershyi Kryvorizkyi CEO Sofia Skyba says that the team would send an address to the City Council to that effect in the coming days.
“Such behavior is unacceptable for a person who supposedly represents the interests of the Kryvyi Rih community. Our media outlet is under constant pressure from local authorities and dubious government bodies. We are used to our queries being ignored — the absence of an answer is an answer in itself. But we will not tolerate unethical behavior, verbal and especially physical abuse. We demand a public apology,” Sofia Skyba says.
