Kyiv court forbids Watchers.Media journalist to take photos during open hearing

On October 17, the Dnipro District Court of Kyiv forbade Watchers.Media journalist Alina Kondratenko to use her phone to take photos of the defendants and their lawyers during an open hearing.

Kondratenko reported this on Facebook and shared the details in a comment to the Institute of Mass Information.

She says that judge Inna Omelyan first insisted that the journalist had to file a petition.

"Interestingly enough, the judge insisted that I answer her questions from the podium in the center of the courtroom, not from my seat. The judge smirked and repeated three times: 'Slowly and clearly state your name.' Even though those who know me also know that I enunciate clearly," said Alina Kondratenko.

She noted that the judge forbade her to take photos despite the memo on the media's rights in open hearings that hangs in the courtroom where it was happenning.

"For whom was the memo then? The lawyer of one of the defendants commented: 'Street fences also have writings on them,'" the journalist added.

She noted that the case was about the former deputy prosecutor of the Obolon district of Kyiv, Ilona Kluge, and the former Kyiv police investigator Vitaliy Matyusha, who are accused of unlawfully prosecuting Mykola Pasichnyk, a Revolution of Dignity activist.

Alina Kondratenko noted that she never received permission to take photos during the entire hearing.

Volodymyr Zelenchuk, a lawyer at the Institute of Mass Information, notes that reporters can take photographs, film videos, and take audio recordings using portable devices (such as mobile phones) in the courtroom without obtaining a separate permission from the court and without the court asking the parties in the trial if they think filming is appropriate.

"Of course, if we are talking about livestreaming or stationary equipment, then a permission from the court is required. This is clearly stated both in Part 4 of Article 11 of the Law 'On the Judiciary and the Status of Judges' and in Part 6 of Article 27 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The fact that judges ignore these laws raises a number of logical questions: is the judge aware of this provision of the law, does the judge deliberately act contrary to this provision, does this suggest that a judge may be biased in favour of one of the parties to the proceedings, etc.," the lawyer said.

He stressed that such cases negatively affect the authority of the judiciary.

"It so happened that it is the Supreme Council of Justice that is supposed to take action to ensure the authority of the judiciary and the independence of judges, in particular, by investigating and checking cases of improper behavior of judges," added Volodymyr Zelenchuk.

On June 5, 2024, the Darnytsky District Court (Kyiv city) judge Polina Kolyadenko asked their journalist Alina Kondratenko to leave a court hearing, falsely assuring her that it was a closed session.

On January 31, 2024, "Watchers" journalist Alina Kondratenko was barred from attending an open hearing at the Solomyansk District Court of Kyiv in the case about the Motor Sich ex-CEO Vyacheslav Bohuslaev.