Journalists Are Being Violently Attacked In Ukraine

Press freedom groups are sounding the alarm about the intensely dangerous situation journalists are facing during the political crisis in the Ukraine.

The country is undergoing a bloody wave of violence as the government cracks down on protesters. In the midst of this, scores of journalists have been assaulted.

The Committee to Protect Journalists and the International Federation of Journalists have both been tracking the targeting of reporters in the country. The IFJ issued a statement saying that police had been "beating and detaining media representatives, shooting at them and throwing noise grenades," and charging the Ukrainian government with having "systematically violated journalists' rights."

The CPJ estimated that at least 42 journalists had been attacked. Some, it said, "reported being shot in the eye or leg."

The Institute of Mass Information, a Ukrainian press group, has been compiling a list of attacks on journalists. The last item on the list reads:

On the eve of January 23, Oleg Ogilko, the chief and film operator of Cherkasy local website 0472.ua, was covering the events near Cherkasy Oblast State Administration when unidentified men in civvies detained and savagely beat him. He sustained a contusion of both kidneys, a a swelled head, bruising and traces of beating all over his body.

The full list is here.