The Leninsky court in Russia’s Altai region on Wednesday sentenced journalist and activist Maria Ponomarenko to six years in prison for spreading «false news» about the actions of the Russian Army during the siege of the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
The Siberian journalist of the RusNews news portal was arrested last April after criticizing the Russian shelling of the theater in the city, although the Kremlin has denied responsibility for the shelling, which left hundreds dead.
The court has ruled that Ponomarenko, 45, is guilty of violating the censorship law passed by the authorities after the start of the war, as reported by the media itself. He has also been banned from working for a period of five years.
«It would be enough to open the Constitution and read to prove my innocence,» said Ponomarenko, who asserted that «no totalitarian regime has ever been so strong just before its own collapse.»
Ponomarenko was hospitalized last summer and underwent a psychiatric examination. She subsequently attempted suicide to protest her detention. The journalist is among at least 150 people who have been tried in Russia under this «false information» law for spreading information about army movements.
RusNews has indicated on its Telegram account that Ponomarenko denies being a criminal, although the Russian Investigative Committee in Altai has reported that the journalist had published a series of photographs and videos via the Internet containing «unreliable information about the actions of the Russian Armed Forces.»
«On previous occasions she was alerted to cease these actions and accused of committing administrative violations,» the committee has said in a statement. Her lawyer, Dimitri Shitov, explained in statements to the Amic news portal that «they are not satisfied» with the verdict given that they had requested her acquittal.
However, he said that they will appeal the court decision and pointed out that «everyone knew that a miracle would not happen». «Maybe other courts will correct this ruling. There is hope that an appeal will go forward in the Supreme Court,» he said.
At his last court hearing, Ponomarenko stressed that Ukrainians were «calling for an end to violence.» «We live in the 21st century, not in the Stone Age. The same things you support in neighboring countries you ban in your own. It is pure hypocrisy,» he asserted at the time.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
