World Governments Urge Russia to Ensure Media Freedom
While concerns related to freedom of expression and the safety of journalists in Russia have intensified, they are not new.
The members of the Media Freedom Coalition have expressed their deep concern about the Russian government’s intensifying harassment of independent journalists and media outlets in Russia. In a joint statement issued on October 28, they assert that media freedom is vital to the effective functioning of free and open societies and is essential to the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The statement is signed by the governments of Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the United States of America.
According to the statement, this year has seen the Russian authorities systematically detain journalists and subject them to harsh treatment while they reported on protests in support of imprisoned opposition figure Alexei Navalny. In April, the office of student journal DOXA was searched in relation to spurious charges and four editors were then subjected to severe restrictions on their freedom.
On June 29, Russian authorities raided the apartments of staff members of investigative news website Proekt on the same day the outlet published an investigation into alleged corrupt practices by Russia’s Interior Minister. Proekt was added to Russia’s list of “undesirable foreign organizations,” the first media entity to receive that designation.
In addition, Russian occupation authorities in Crimea have held Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reporter Vladislav Yesypenko since March and have reportedly tortured him in detention. On July 15, Yesypenko was indicted on specious charges and faces up to 18 years’ imprisonment. On October 8, Russian authorities applied the label of “media foreign agent” to the international investigative journalism project Bellingcat, known for its investigation of the poisoning of Navalny.
In an unambiguous effort to suppress Russians’ access to independent reporting, the Russian government introduced onerous labeling requirements for so-called “media foreign agents” last year. Since then, it has charged RFE/RL with more than 600 violations, resulting in fines totaling more than $4.4 million.
Russian authorities rejected RFE/RL’s appeals of initial fines in March and froze the local bank accounts of RFE/RL’s Moscow bureau on May 14, placing the bureau at risk of bankruptcy. It increasingly appears the Russian government intends to force RFE/RL to end its decades-long presence in Russia, just as it has already forced the closure of several other independent media outlets in recent years.
In addition to RFE/RL, authorities have applied the “media foreign agent” label to independent Russian outlets operating within or near Russia’s borders, including Meduza, Important Stories, VTimes, The Insider, Mediazona, OVD-Info, Medium Orient, PASMI news, Moscow.
Digital Media and TV channel Dozhd, undercutting their ability to operate. As a result of this crackdown, VTimes was forced to announce its closure less than a month after its designation. Over the past four months, Russian authorities added dozens more Russian journalists to their “foreign agent” list.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 10 journalists are currently imprisoned in Russia simply for carrying out their work. The Russian authorities’ decision to expel BBC Journalist Sarah Rainsford is also a retrograde step that further damages the cause of media freedom in Russia.
The September 17-19 Duma elections in the Russian Federation were preceded by Russian government restrictions towards journalists and media workers. Journalists and media workers were threatened and forcibly expelled from polling stations. These actions contradict Russia’s international commitments.
While concerns related to freedom of expression and the safety of journalists in Russia have intensified, they are not new. The Media Freedom Coalition says it stands in solidarity with independent Russian journalists who assume personal risk in carrying out their professional activities, and it honors the memory of those reporters whose intrepid work has cost them their lives, including Natalia Estemirova, Anna Politkovskaya, and Paul Klebnikov.
The Media Freedom Coalition statement congratulated Dmitry Muratov, editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta, on winning the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. This award underlines the important work all independent journalists and media workers in the Russian Federation have done for years, fighting for human rights, including freedom of expression.
The Coalition reiterated its condemnation of the Russian government’s targeting and harassment of independent journalists and media outlets. It urged the Russian Federation to comply with its international human rights commitments and obligations and to respect and ensure media freedom and safety of journalists.
The Coalition also asked the Russian government to cease its repression of independent voices, end the politically motivated proceedings against journalists and media organizations, and release all those who have been unjustly detained.
