OSCE Media Representative concerned over sentencing of journalists in Russia

VIENNA, 7 January 2002 - At the end of December 2001, two journalists were sentenced in Russia to prison terms.

Grigory Pasko, a military journalist, was convicted of treason by a military court in Vladivostok and sentenced to four years in prison for providing a Japanese television company with footage of the Russian navy dumping nuclear waste into the Pacific Ocean.

In Belgorod a local court sentenced Olga Kitova, a reporter for Belgorodskaya Pravda, to a suspended sentence of 2 and a half years for libel and using force against government representatives. Ms. Kitova was active in investigating corruption in her region. Both journalists plan to appeal.

"Only courageous independent journalists can address the dangers of corruption and disastrous ecological mistakes," said Freimut Duve, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. "It is my understanding that the Russian government with its new policy also pays close attention to infringements on freedom of the media."

On several occasions, Mr. Duve has raised both these cases in the OSCE Permanent Council and with the Russian authorities. Without prejudicing the judicial process, the OSCE Representative is convinced that the Russian higher court will review the two appeals with the utmost care.

The OSCE Representative will continue to closely monitor the situation regarding Mr. Pasko and Ms. Kitova.