UNESCO calls for a thorough investigation of Victoria Roshchyna's death in Russian custody

UNESCO insists on a transparent and thorough investigation into the tragic death of Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna in Russian custody, said Tawfik Jelassi, UNESCO Deputy Director-General for Communication and Information, in response to an appeal from Ukraine's National Council on Television and Radio Broadcasting (NCTRB) and the IFAP National Committee, reports the NCTRB website.

Jelassi stressed that UNESCO “remains committed to protecting the rights of journalists and adhering to the principles enshrined in UN Security Council Resolution 2222, which emphasizes the protection of journalists in conflict zones as civilians.”

Victoria Roshchyna, photo by Victoria Roshchyna on Facebook/divoche.media

He assured that the organization would continue to make efforts to protect journalists in all corners of the world and demand justice for those who suffered in the performance of their duties.

The letter from the organization's Deputy Director-General was a response to the repeated appeals by the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to UNESCO and the Ukrainian delegation's active work at the 34th session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Program for the Development of Communications (November 21–22, 2024) while discussing the UNESCO Director-General's report on the safety of journalists.

Earlier, the chair of the NCTRB and the IFAP National Committee, Olha Herasymiuk, submitted an appeal to UNESCO to demand an investigation into the death of Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna, who was kidnapped in Ukraine's temporarily occupied territories and killed in Russia.

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay also responded to the appeal and called for an investigation. She expressed regret over Victoria Roshchyna's death in Russian custody and called for a transparent investigation into this tragic event, emphasizing that the safety of journalists in conflict zones must remain a priority for the international community.

Previously

The death of Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna in Russian detention was reported on October 10, 2024. According to the letter sent to her family by Russia's Ministry of Defense on October 10, Victoria died on September 19.

Victoria Roshchyna's name was on the swap lists.

Russia admitted detaining Victoria Roshchyna, who went missing on August 3, 2023 in the temporarily occupied territory. Victoria was held in Russia.

According to the Media Initiative for Human Rights, Victoria Roshchyna was detained in one of the most brutal prisons in Russia – the Taganrog PTDC No. 2. Former prisoners talk about this detention center as a prison with the most intense torture.

On October 18, Petro Yatsenko, a representative of the Coordinating Headquarters for POW Treatment, did not deny that Russia could be stalling with the repatriation of her body. He later reported that the journalist's body had not been given back to Ukraine as part of the October 18 swap.