Russian journalist union ordered to wind up

A COURT in Moscow has ordered the independent Journalists and Media Workers Union to close down, at the request of the prosecutor's office. The action, in December, followed the Union taking part in "unauthorised activity" - including a demonstration in support of jailed journalist Ivan Sofranov. The International Federation of Journalists and the European Federation of Journalists, both of which include the NUJ, condemned the move.

Among the 1300 people arrested across Russia in a single September day of protests against the nationwide military mobilisation and call-up for the "special military operation" in Ukraine were 18 journalists. The European Federation of Journalists reported that the majority of those journalists arrested on that day were women.

One male journalist who was detained while covering protests was Artem Kreiger, broadcasting live for SOTA-Vision. He was issued with military call-up papers ordering him to report to his nearest military registration office. He was served these while still in a police van.

• A second case has been brought at the European Court of Justice over the EU-wide ban on state-sponsored broadcasters Russia Today and Sputnik. The Freedom of Information Coalition brought the action on 7 September, supported by the Dutch journalists union NVJ, which had brought an earlier complaint against the ban on the Russian internet and TV channels.

© Matt Salusbury

Situation still dire for Russian journalists (April 2022)