Salla Nazarenko
Dr., International Affairs Specialist
Union of Journalists in Finland
Finland
salla.nazarenko@journalistiliitto.fi
On 14 December Ukraine heard the long-awaited news: the EU agreed to start accession talks with Ukraine. “History is made by those who don’t get tired of fighting for freedom”, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was quoted as saying.
Zelenskyy is not alone. Freedom is a word our leaders love. It is a word packed with different meanings: for a society, it means opportunities for all, it means human rights, equality and free enterprise. Contemporary Russia is seen as the antithesis of freedom and of Europe’s core values of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights. In fact, since the start of the war, Russia has destroyed nearly everything related to freedom of opinion and speech, from criminalizing peaceful anti-war demonstrations to introducing unprecedented censorship laws.
Freedom of the press is essential for the realization of all other freedoms. Only a free and uncensored media allows people the opportunity to make informed decisions about their lives. It is the cornerstone of the rule of law, of free and fair elections, of justice for all.
Despite the war, Ukraine has managed to remain a country with a relatively free press. In Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index 2023 Ukraine was ranked 79th out of 180 countries. This is not a great rating, but it is a rise of 37 places since 2022, when Ukraine was ranked 106th. The situation is not easy, but it is far from hopeless.
Most importantly, Ukrainian journalists have been able to monitor the press freedom. There are several journalists’ trade unions that are members of international umbrella organizations, and numerous smaller press freedom watchdogs, media development agencies, fact-checkers and many others. The government’s attempts to control the media do not go unnoticed.
In June 2023, the Human Rights Centre Zmina conducted a small opinion poll on the state of press freedom in Ukraine. The participating journalists gave Ukraine a score of 6,4 points out of 10 on a scale, where 1 is non-existent and 10 is very good. (The amount of respondents was small, but the results are indicative). One in five journalists said that civil servants refuse to disclose important information, there is censorship and there are situations where journalists are denied accreditation. Sounds bad, but happens everywhere: here in Finland a survey conducted by the Union of Journalists in September 2023 revealed that over fifty percent of journalists in Finland feel that it has become more difficult to get information from civil servants. The rampant misinformation and disinformation, sometimes spread by our politicians, has lead to a decline in trust in the media everywhere.
War is a situation in which all states censor. Military secrets are protected by national laws. Disclosing strategically important information can jeopardise national security, so a certain amount of military censorship is acceptable. But even in war what we need is transparency and openness about the extent of censorship and the relationship between journalists and military authorities.
After the war began, President Zelenskyy signed a decree on a unified information policy, based on martial law. A singleTV platform was created bringing together important national TV channels, the oligarch-owned “1+1 media”, “Starlight media” and “Inter media group”, and the public service broadcaster and parliamentary channel “Verhovna rada” was created. These channels broadcast a unified programme that is officially approved by the state.
Understandably, the platform has been criticized by journalists. Opposition TV channels are not included. At the same time, according to press freedom watchdogs, President Zelenskyy and senior officials in Ukraine have prioritized giving interviews to the international media rather than the local media. The reason for this is the need for military and humanitarian aid: appeals to the international press make public opinion in other countries more sympathetic towards Ukraine’s needs.
This is understandable, but in order to be fit for EU membership, Ukraine’s leaders need to take press freedom, access to information and journalists’ rights seriously. Corruption, although being tackled, remains a major problem in Ukraine. War brings new problems: illegal weapons, unclear money flows, possible lack of transparency in the delivery of aid and reconstruction funds. Zelenskyy became president thanks to television: now it’s time for him and others to see the value of the free and unbiased flow of information that only a vibrant professional media can provide. The media law was reformed at the end of 2022 to meet EU membership criteria. However, the legal environment is only the foundation. Ukraine’s private media has suffered greatly from the financial hardship caused by the war: rebuilding the media must be part of rebuilding Ukraine.