Geneva – United Nations Human Rights, July 23, 2024
The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation, Mariana Katzarova, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Irene Khan, called yet again on the Russian authorities to immediately release the journalists and drop all charges against them. They issued the following statement:
“We are shocked by the sentencing of Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva for crimes they have not committed. Their only ‘crime’ was that they reported the news about Russia, including about the war against Ukraine. The rushed and secretive nature of their trials — over three and two days respectively, and behind closed doors — is yet another demonstration of the sham trials and convictions on fabricated charges of reporters who were just doing their job.
