Marina Ovsyannikova, an editor of Russia’s Channel One news channel, ran on to the set shouting, ‘Stop the war. No to war’
Russian Channel One editor Marina Ovsyannikova holds a poster reading ” Stop the war. Don’t believe the propaganda. Here they are lying to you” during on-air TV studio by news anchor Yekaterina Andreyeva , Russia’s most-watched evening news broadcast, in Moscow. AFP
On Monday, a Russian journalist made headlines across the world when she rushed on to the set of a live TV news programme holding up a sign, and shouting slogans denouncing the war in Ukraine.
Following her extraordinary show of dissent, she was detained and was only released after she was slapped with a fine of 30,000 rouble and could possibly face jail time.
We take a look at who she is, why her show of dissent was truly astonishing and what happens to her next.
Who is Marina Ovsyannikova?
Marina Ovsyannikova has worked as an editor at Russia’s state TV Channel One for several years.
As Russia continued its offensive against Ukraine, shelling residential areas and dropping missiles, on Monday night, she interrupted a live news bulletin, holding up a sign behind the studio presenter and shouting slogans denouncing the war in Ukraine.
The sign, in English and Russian, read: “NO WAR. Stop the war. Don’t believe propaganda. They are lying to you here.”
Another phrase, which looked like “Russians against war”, was partly obscured.
Marina could be seen and heard for several seconds before the channel switched to a different report to remove her from the screen.
Before the protest, she recorded a video via the OVD-Info human rights group in which she called events in Ukraine a “crime” and said she was ashamed to work for what she called Kremlin propaganda.
“I’m ashamed that I allowed myself to tell lies from the television screen. Ashamed that I allowed Russians to be turned into zombies,” she explained.
She called on the Russian people to protest against the war, saying that only they could “stop the madness”.
“Regrettably, for a number of years, I worked on Channel One and worked on Kremlin propaganda, I am very ashamed of this right now. Ashamed that I was allowed to tell lies from the television screen. Ashamed that I allowed the zombification of the Russian people. We were silent in 2014 when this was just beginning. We did not go out to protest when the Kremlin poisoned (opposition leader Alexei) Navalny,” she is quoted as saying.
“We are just silently watching this anti-human regime. And now the whole world has turned away from us and the next 10 generations won’t be able to clean themselves from the shame of this fratricidal war.”
“What is happening in Ukraine is a crime and Russia is the aggressor,” she said. “The responsibility of this aggression lies on the shoulders of only one person: Vladimir Putin.”
A report in The Guardian quoted Marina’s friend as saying that her anger had been building ever since the war started. “Two days ago, she told me how she was going to do it,” the unnamed friend said to the UK-based newspaper.
Marina’s arrest and court appearance
Shortly after her protest on television, it is believed that the news editor was arrested by Russian authorities.
She reappeared on Tuesday evening at a Moscow courtroom alongside lawyer Anton Gashishky. According to Novaya Gazeta, Marina was charged with an administrative offence for holding an unauthorised protest.
She was ordered to pay a fine and still risks criminal charges with a penalty of up to 15 years in jail.
Marina Ovsyannikova, the editor at the state broadcaster Channel One who protested against Russian military action in Ukraine during the evening news broadcast at the station late Monday, leaves the Ostankinsky District Court after being fined for 30,000 rubles in Moscow. AFP
News agency AFP reported that Marina pleaded not guilty in court, saying: “I am still convinced that Russia is committing a crime.”
“These are very difficult days in my life,” she said after the ruling.
“I’ve spent two days literally without sleep.”
She was quoted as saying, “Don’t be afraid of anything. They can’t imprison us all.”
Support for Marina
The journalist’s courage was applauded by Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In his nightly address, he said, “”I am grateful to those Russians who do not stop trying to convey the truth. To those who fight disinformation and tell the truth, real facts to their friends and loved ones. And personally to the woman who entered the studio of Channel One with a poster against the war.”
French president Emmanuel Macron offered asylum or other forms of consular protection to Marina.
Macron, who has maintained a dialogue with President Vladimir Putin despite the war, said he would bring up her case at his next conversation with the Russian leader.
“We will launch diplomatic efforts aiming to offer (her) protection — either at the embassy but also protection through asylum,” said Macron.
“I will have the chance at my next talks with President Putin to propose this solution in a very direct and concrete manner,” he added.
Kira Yarmysh, spokeswoman for jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny, wrote on Twitter: “Wow, that girl is cool.”
Silencing dissent
Russia has long been accused of silencing any form of dissent and the claim has gained more credence since the war broke out with authorities clamping down on protests against the Ukrainian offensive.
Independent monitoring group OVD-Info has stated that more than 14,000 people have been arrested across cities in Russia so far for protesting against the war.
Also see: ‘No to war’: Thousands of Russians arrested for protests against Ukrainian invasion
In fact, on 4 March, passed a new law under which Russians could face prison sentences of up to 15 years for spreading information that goes against the state government’s position on the war in Ukraine.
Since the war broke out on 24 February, independent media outlets have shut down or forced to stop its operations.
Ekho Moskvy (Echo of Moscow), one of the country’s last remaining liberal radio channels, was taken off the air in early March after coming under pressure for its coverage of the invasion in Ukraine.
TV Rain, Russia’s last independent TV channel, has also stopped its operations temporarily.
Its websites too were blocked because of its coverage of the conflict. “We need strength to … understand how we can work from here. We really hope that we will return to broadcasting and continue our work,” TV Rain’s general director, Natalya Sindeeva, said in a statement.
Novaya Gazeta, the independent Russian newspaper run by Nobel Prize-winning editor Dmitry Muratov, continues to operate. It has vowed not to turn into “propagandists” and be truthful to its 30 million readers.
With inputs from agencies
Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,
India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.