Russia: Exiled Ekaterina Fomina Charged for Spreading “False Information” About Army
Journalist facing trial for her investigative reporting into Russian war crimes in Ukraine
Location: Russia
Date: January 10, 2024
Women Press Freedom condemns the unjust criminal charges against Ekaterina Fomina, a distinguished investigative journalist, for exposing Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The journalist, who lives in exile, is being accused of spreading "false information" about the Russian army. Women Press Freedom strongly condemns these unjust charges, seeing them as a Kremlin intimidation tactic to silence truthful reporting on atrocities perpetrated by its army in Ukraine. We demand the charges against Fomina be dropped and an end to the harassment of Russian journalists in exile.
WPF welcomes the judgment of the Fair Work Commission that found that broadcaster Antoinette Lattouf was fired by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) following a social media post by Lattouf sharing a Human Rights Watch claim about Israel's actions in Gaza.
WPF is deeply concerned for the safety of press workers in Georgia following the disputed elections marred by violence, allegations of vote rigging, and claims of electoral misconduct. Throughout election day, journalists reporting at polling stations faced assaults, intimidation, and obstruction, highlighting the growing dangers for independent media covering politically sensitive events in the country
Women Press Freedom stands resolutely in solidarity with Arzu Yıldız, an investigative journalist from Turkiye forced into exile after facing persistent threats and persecution for her work. Yıldız's experience is emblematic of the broader crackdown on press freedom under President Tayyip Erdoğan's regime, where dissent is aggressively stifled. We unequivocally condemn the targeting and persecution of journalists by President Tayyip Erdoğan's government.
On January 10, 2024, Russian state-run outlet TASS reported the Investigative Committee had launched a criminal probe into lauded investigative journalist Ekaterina Fomina. The authorities are accusing her of spreading false information about the army following her reporting of Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
Fomina's investigation, titled "Executions, looting, and criminal orders. The firsthand truth about the war," exposed alleged atrocities committed by soldiers of the 64th Motorised Rifle Brigade of Russia’s Armed Forces.
The former correspondent of Important Stories (IStories) produced a report detailing testimonies, including a confession from Guard Corporal Daniil Frolkin, that implicated the Russian military in the execution of civilians in the village of Andriivka, Ukraine.
Russian state news claims that Frolkin provided Fomina with inaccurate information about the actions of the Russian army in exchange for not disclosing compromising information about him. Fomina refutes these allegations, asserting that she had no compromising information about Frolkin and that he voluntarily confessed to the murder during their interaction. She maintains that her reporting was based on facts obtained from open sources and firsthand accounts.
Fromina, who now lives outside Russia, could potentially face up to 10 years in prison if convicted upon returning to her home country.
"I don't care how the Russian Federation labels me because I know that the Russian government and authorities are the real terrorists and enemies of the people, not us," Fomina told VOA in a report on exiled Russian journalists. Fomina, like many of her colleagues from independent outlets in Russia, was left with little choice but to flee Russia following the increasing pressure coming from the Kremlin after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The journalist, who began her career reporting for Novaya Gazeta, says she will continue to report despite all the pressures, criminal cases, and intimidation tactics exerted by the Russian state.
"The least we can do now for Ukraine, considering that the country of my citizenship began the war, is to investigate all crimes that our fellow citizens committed," says Fomina.
In 2023, Women Press Freedom documented numerous cases of transnational repression violations against journalists globally. By far, the largest violator was Russia. The Kremlin is increasingly going after exiled journalists who have fled the country and continue to report. They do this by adding journalists to wanted lists, sentencing them in absentia, intimidating their families who remain in Russia, and even attempting to poison them. The goal is to silence these dissenters and critical journalists who continue to oppose Putin, his government, and the war in Ukraine.
Women Press Freedom strongly condemns the unjust criminal charges levied against Ekaterina Fomina, which are in retaliation for her investigative journalism exposing the reprehensible actions of Russian soldiers in Ukraine. Criminal charges against her must be dropped.
We call upon nations to provide sanctuary to persecuted journalists targeted by the Kremlin to guarantee their safety and security. Russia's consistent flouting of international norms and borders underscores the urgent need for protective measures for exiled journalists, enabling them to continue their essential reporting safely from their places of refuge.
WPF is deeply saddened by the death of Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roschyna, who died under unclear circumstances while being transferred to a Moscow prison. The circumstances of her death remain uncertain, but one fact is clear: the Kremlin bears responsibility.
WPF strongly condemns the criminal charges brought against Ukrainian journalists Diana Butsko, Olesya Borovik, and CNN’s Nick Peyton Walsh by Russian federal security services for their coverage of Ukrainian military incursion into the Kursk region.
WPF is alarmed that the well-known journalist is facing issues traveling due to the Kremlin’s concerted and unjust transnational repression tactics
WPF strongly condemns Moscow's legal threats against Italian journalists Stefania Battistini and Simone Traini, who work for the Italian public broadcaster RAI. The journalists stand accused of "illegal border-crossing" after reporting on Ukraine’s counter-invasion in Russia's Kursk region.
WPF is delighted that Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva has been released from prison in Russia and is finally, after ten grueling months, able to return home to family in Prague.
WPF condemns the sentencing of Ukrainian TV presenter Natalia Moseychuk to five years in prison by a Moscow court, in yet another transnational repression attack on press freedom.
WPF condemns the Kremlin’s relentless legal harassment of exiled journalists under “foreign agent” law.
Elizaveta Surnacheva is now facing a second prosecution for failing to comply with the reporting requirements imposed on those labeled as “foreign agents.”
Olga Komleva, a reporter and activist from Ufa, is facing mounting legal pressures and accusations.
In a stark affront to press freedom, a Russian court has convicted American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva in a secret trial, sentencing her to six and a half years in prison.
Exiled journalist Lyudmila Savitskaya has been subjected to continuous legal and financial harassment by the Russian regime, WPF is worryingly documenting.
War photographers Olga Kovalova and Vladyslav Krasnoshchok were injured by Russian shelling while covering the conflict in Toretsk, Donetsk.
Women Press Freedom condemns the continued persecution of journalist who has faced years of harassment.
WPF strongly condemns the ongoing persecution of journalists by the Russian government, which continues to label independent news outlets as “undesirable.”
WPF strongly denounces this transnational repression and calls on the international community to stand in solidarity with Taratuta and other exiled journalists who remain vulnerable to state-sanctioned reprisals from Russia for continuing to report.
Russian-US journalist and author Masha Gessen was convicted in absentia by a Moscow court on charges of spreading false information about the military.
The Kremlin has initiated yet another deplorable attack on press freedom by opening an administrative case against exiled journalist Yulia Latynina.
The Interior Ministry issues arrest warrants for at least 13 women and non-binary journalists.
Court arrests Lazareva in absentia following search warrant by Ministry of Internal Affairs. The renowned journalist is unjustly accused of justifying terrorism.
The deepfake targeting France 24 and journalist Catalina Marchant de Abreu is a serious threat to press freedom and public trust.
WPF vehemently condemns the recent decision by a St. Petersburg court to label the journalist couple Lydia Nevzorova and Aleksandr Nevzorov as an “extremist union.”
WPF denounces additional fines slapped on Baranova for “failure to comply with foreign agent law”
Russian military forces detained Zhanna Kyseliova, editor of the Kakhovska Zoria newspaper, on June 27, 2024, in Kakhovka, Kherson, following a raid on her apartment.
WPF denounces Russia’s decision to revoke the accreditation of Carola Schneider, a seasoned Moscow correspondent for Austria’s ORF.
WPF unequivocally condemns the Kremlin’s persistent and cynical use of transnational repression to silence dissenting voices, both domestically and abroad.
Arrested in absentia, journalist Ekaterina Fomina faces charges for disseminating "fakes" about the Russian army — a clear retaliation against her investigative reporting, which exposed a Russian soldier's confession to murder in Ukraine.
WPF condemns in the strongest terms the Russian Foreign Ministry's decision to revoke the accreditation of Austrian journalist Maria Knips-Witting and order her expulsion from the country.
WPF condemns in the strongest terms the recent actions taken by Rosfinmonitorin in designating journalists Maria Menshikova and Anna Loiko as “terrorists and extremists.”
Victoria Roshchyna, a Ukrainian journalist who went missing in August 2023, is being held by Russia’s Ministry of Defence, WPF can confirm.
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