Russia: Siberian journalist Maria Ponomarenko sentenced to six years — CFWIJ calls for her immediate release
Location: Russia, Barnaul
Date: February 15, 2023Updated February 8, 2024
Following a harrowing detention since her arrest in April 2022, Maria Ponomarenko is sentenced to six years in prison by a Russian court. The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns this ridiculous sentencing. Russia is using “disinformation” laws to target those who report truthfully on the war. This attempt to silence journalists must end. All charges against Ponomarenko should be dropped, and she should be released immediately.
On February 15, 2023, the Leninsky District Court in Barnaul convicted Maria Ponomarenko of disseminating “fake news.” She was sentenced to six years in prison and banned from journalistic activities for five years. Speaking to CPJ following the verdict, her lawyer, Dmitriy Shitov, said she intends to appeal the judgment.
Almost a year later, on February 8, 2024, a court in Kemerovo rejected Ponomarenko’s appeal against her verdict and sentence.
Maria Ponomarenko was arrested on April 24, 2022, for a post she distributed via her “No Censorship” Telegram channel about civilian deaths in Mariupol, Ukraine. She was charged under a law passed in March 2022 that criminalizes the dissemination of “fake” reports that “discredit the armed forces.”
Difficulties in detention and under house arrest
Since her arrest, Maria Ponomarenko has suffered greatly at the hands of Russian authorities. In July 2022, she published an open letter detailing how she was tortured and forcibly drugged while detained in a psychiatric hospital in Siberia. She revealed that officers held her down while a nurse injected her against her will. She was later granted house arrest.
On January 27, 2023, Maria was forced to leave house arrest after being allegedly attacked by her ex-husband, according to her lawyer Dmitry Shitov. She reported herself to the Federal Penitentiary Service and asked to be sent to pretrial detention as conditions under house arrest were “unbearable.” The journalist’s previous request to be placed into pretrial detention was denied by the court.
Maria Ponomarenko has been unjustly imprisoned and endured a harrowing detention. The Russian government must stop weaponizing legal tools to silence its critics. This “fake news” law is being used to stifle dissent in Russia and to imprison journalists reporting civilian casualties in Ukraine. All charges against Maria Ponomarenko should be dropped, and she should be released immediately.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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