Ukrainian journalist Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, to be repatriated to Ukraine

Viktoriia Roshchyna, a Ukrainian journalist who passed away while in Russian captivity, was detained in a correctional facility in Taganrog, located in the Rostov region of the Russian Federation, and in a prison camp in temporarily occupied Berdiansk, where prisoners are subject to torture. The deceased woman's family has been informed of when her body will be repatriated to Ukraine.

The Media Initiative for Human Rights and Ukrinform reported that.

People's Deputy, Chairman of the Committee on Freedom of Speech, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, stated during a conversation with journalists in the Verkhovna Rada [Ukraine's parliament – ed.] that:

"It will be incorrect if this information is announced by me rather than by relatives. However, it will be shortly."

"There is information that Viktoriia was being prepared for exchange. This could have been the second case when we had managed to free a civilian journalist… Unfortunately, this time we failed..." he noted.

Yurchyshyn recalled that on June 28, 2024, Ukraine exchanged the first deputy of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, journalist Nariman Dzhelal.

"What we are already doing: to the death of Viktoriia in Russian captivity, there will be a reaction not only of the Verkhovna Rada but also of the entire government of Ukraine," he emphasized.

According to the deputy, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, is already working to register the death of the Ukrainian journalist as a war crime. In turn, the military prosecutor's office is conducting work on the opening of criminal proceedings on intentional murder.

"We, as a committee, appeal to the international community. We already have the position of Reporters Without Borders, who demand an investigation of this crime for the criminal actions of Russia, stressing that the Russian Federation has already killed 12 civilian journalists and is holding a large number hostage," the deputy emphasized.

The head of the specialized committee said that work is currently underway through the National Union of Journalists with European and world federations of journalists, and plans are being made to draw public attention to other held civilian journalist hostages, in particular Dmytro Hyliuk and others. It is also planned to communicate with the ICRC and the OSCE.

As the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIHR) reported, Viktoriia Roshchyna was held in the Taganrog pre-trial detention center in the Rostov region of the Russian Federation and the correctional colony in the temporarily occupied Berdiansk.

This was also confirmed by Tetiana Katrychenko, executive director of the Media Initiative for Human Rights, who reported on Facebook that Roshchyna was held in at least two prisons: correctional colony No. 77 in Berdyansk and pre-trial detention center No. 2 in Taganrog.

"The Russians have used both places since the first months of the full-scale invasion to hold both Ukrainian military personnel and civilians, particularly women."

As Katrychenko noted:

"Viktoriia was held in Taganrog from at least May to September 2024. In solitary confinement. On the eve of the exchange on September 13, 2024, Roshchyna and at least one other woman from Melitopol were taken out of Taganrog."

The Greek Catholic priests Ivan Levytsky and Bohdan Heleta were also detained at Correctional Colony No. 77 in Berdiansk and were repatriated to Ukraine during the exchange on June 25, 2024.

According to MIHR, prisoners are electrocuted in this place.

The pre-trial detention center No. 2 in Taganrog has a reputation for being one of the most brutal detention centers in Russia, according to former inmates. At this facility, the defenders of Mariupol were first detained in April 2022.

According to the recollections of released prisoners of war, the guards of the detention center in Taganrog use three main means of torture:

• rubber mallet,
• wooden hammer,
• stun guns.

Prisoners are subjected to beatings during intake, daily searches, and interrogations. During interrogations, they are coerced into confessing to crimes they did not commit.

Former prisoners have reported that there was a change in management at this detention center in September 2022, which was attributed to the deaths of two prisoners of war.

As mentioned, following that, the conditions did improve, but they didn't cease the torture of the prisoners. The only change was that a medic was present during the torture. If the captive falls ill, the medic would administer a pill.

For reference:

On October 10, the representative of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, Petro Yatsenko, confirmed the death of Viktoriia Roshchyna in Russian captivity.

Viktoriia Roshchyna went to carry out her professional obligations in the area currently under occupation and has been out of contact since August 2023.

In March 2022, Roshchyna was captured by Russian forces and held in Berdiansk for ten days.

Last month, Russia officially acknowledged for the first time that it is detaining Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, a former employee of Hromadske, who went missing in August of the previous year.

Rubryka previously reported that 32 Ukrainian media representatives are currently in Russian captivity. Talks are underway for their prompt release.