Ukrainian journalists film Poland's trade with Russia and were deported with their property seized – video

Rayon.in.ua, a Ukrainian news outlet, has stated that Polish law enforcers have detained two journalists who were investigating Poland's trade with Russia.

Source: Rayon.in.ua

Quote: "Editor Yurii Konkevych and videographer Oleksandr Piliuk were detained on 7 March while recording the crossing of the border by lorries between the Kaliningrad Oblast of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Poland."

Quote from Konkevych: "Rayon.Zakordon travelled to the north of Poland, to the border with the Kaliningrad Oblast of the Russian Federation, to see how gas and grain from Russia are still flowing through Poland to Europe. We did not see any checkpoints of Polish farmers there, but instead saw Russian Railways cars. The Polish police detained us and seized our property, did not inform the consul, did not allow us to call [our contacts in] Ukraine, and the Internal Security Agency called us persons threatening the national security of Poland and expelled us."

Details: The journalists were reportedly detained in the city of Braniewo. It happened on 7 March at around 13:10 local time.

"The reason for the detention was that the journalists had been taking pictures of critical infrastructure facilities, namely Russian liquefied gas cars, for too long," Rayon.in.ua said.  

It is also reported that police officers searched the journalists’ car without their consent. They seized an editorial laptop, three microphones, headphones, lighting equipment and other personal belongings from a backpack in the car.

In addition, two smartphones, two cameras, a personal MacBook, memory cards, power banks and even selfie sticks were taken from the journalists.

As of the evening of 9 March, border guards brought the journalists to the Dorohusk-Yahodyn checkpoint and banned them from visiting Schengen Area countries for five years.

Rayon.in.ua reported that the journalists were fulfilling their duties – they had an editorial assignment to investigate the topic of freight traffic, assess the traffic flow and find out whether Polish or Russian vehicles were used to cross the border. They also had to talk to eyewitnesses and experts to assess the scale of such trade.

Rayon.in.ua called on the Ukrainian and Polish authorities to respond appropriately to this incident. 

Quote from Ihor Denysevych, CID Media Group Director: "The editorial office has now started the process of appealing against the deportation, which prohibits our journalists from visiting Schengen countries for five years. But we are appealing to international journalistic organisations for support, as this reaction of Polish law enforcement officers threatens freedom of speech not just in relation to Ukrainian journalists. We also demand the return of property that is valuable and of material value. The lack of equipment largely blocks the activities of the news outlet."

Background:

• On 27 February, Ukrainska Pravda reporter Mykhailo Tkach reported an incident involving his detention by the police. Some Polish media outlets have also pointed to a connection between these two events.
• Mykhailo Tkach was working with a camera operator near the Polish-Belarusian border (the Podlaskie Voivodeship borders with Belarusian territory), shooting footage about the transit of freight between Poland, Russia and Belarus.
• Police officers approached him, showed him their ID, took him to the police station and searched his car and equipment before finally letting him go after four hours of questioning that involved special services.
• Sevhil Musaieva, Editor-in-Chief of Ukrainska Pravda, noted that the issue was only resolved after news about it spread and the Ukrainian embassy in Poland was involved.
• The Polish police initially denied detaining media representatives, but later acknowledged it. They explained that, before detaining the journalist Mykhailo Tkach from Ukrainska Pravda and his cameraman near the Polish-Belarusian border, they received a report from a 'concerned resident' about two men photographing and using a drone near the railway tracks in the village of Gołyszyn in Łuków County.

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