For the past year, Evan Gershkovich has been locked up in a small cell similar in size to a prison courtyard – six steps by six – allowing him only an hour a day.
To keep his mind active, he reads and meditates. His sister, Danielle Gershkovich, said he exercised to stay healthy.
32-year-old journalist’s detention in Russia extended wall street journal Read letters from his family and well-wishers, meet with his Russian legal team, receive occasional visits from the U.S. ambassador and attend court hearings.
By Tuesday at the latest, a Moscow court ordered Gershkovic to be detained for three months pending a retrial.
Friday marks the first anniversary of Russian police detention wall street journal The reporter spoke in Yekaterinburg, a city about 1,600 kilometers east of Moscow, on charges of espionage that are widely considered false.
The Russian government has so far not provided any evidence to substantiate its charges, which carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
As Gershkovich was forced to wait in a Russian cell, his family and colleagues were bombarded with media campaigns to raise awareness of his case and try to speed up negotiations for his release.
His family said they were taking medication every day.
“We looked at Evan and we were just in awe – really amazed by him,” his sister told reporters in Washington in early March.
Danielle Gershkovich said the siblings wrote regularly, adding: “We talk all the time about how much we miss each other. He misses us so much.”
Paul Beckett said the first anniversary of Gershkovich’s arrest was a worrying opportunity to shine a spotlight on Gershkovich’s case and the need for his immediate release.as periodical Beckett, an assistant editor in Washington, is leading the paper’s campaign to secure the journalists’ release.
“Life goes on. The world moves on. But not for Evan. He’s locked in the same cell 23 hours a day,” Beckett told VOA at a VOA press conference. periodical Washington Bureau.
In order to continue to pay attention to this case, Magazine Swimming events in solidarity with journalists were staged at beaches around the world called Brighton. Gershkovich has links to both New York and Brighton Beach in England.
The newspaper also hosted a 24-hour reading marathon of Gershkovich’s works at its New York headquarters this week.
The United States announced it had wrongfully detained Gershkovic, the first American journalist to be jailed in Russia on espionage charges since the Cold War. Beckett said the arrest highlighted threats to press freedom around the world.
“This is certainly a reminder to all of us journalists in dangerous places that journalism is a dangerous business,” Beckett told VOA. “It’s a noble and worthy endeavor, but some governments around the world really don’t like.”
Analysts say his arrest, along with that of Russian-American journalist Arsu Kurmasheva, has had a chilling effect on foreign media still in Russia.
Kurmasheva, the editor of VOA sister network Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, has been imprisoned in Russia since October 2023 on charges of failing to register as a foreign agent and spreading disinformation about the Russian military. She and her employer reject the accusations.
Such imprisonments highlight the poor state of press freedom in Russia. At the end of 2023, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) ranked the country as the fourth worst country for imprisoning media workers, with 22 people behind bars.
The Russian Foreign Ministry and the embassy in Washington did not respond to emails from VOA requesting comment.
U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy, speaking after Tuesday’s court hearing, condemned the decision to extend Gershkovic’s detention.
“Evan’s case has nothing to do with evidence, due process or the rule of law. It is about using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends,” Tracy said outside the Moscow City Court. “Evan has shown extraordinary resilience and strength in the face of this dire situation. But now it is time for the Russian government to release Evan.”
Media watchdogs said they doubted it would be a legitimate act of justice when the case did go to trial.
“I have no doubt that this will be a sham proceeding just to once again show or pretend that the Russian judiciary acts independently of the Kremlin, which is not the case, especially in this political case.” Committee to Protect Journalists Europe and Central Asia Project coordinator Gulnoza Saeed told VOA.
Still, those working on the Gershkovich case see a trial — and possible conviction — as a necessary step to eventually secure the journalist’s release through diplomatic channels.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Kremlin was willing to trade Gershkovic for a convicted murderer jailed in Germany.
Jason Conti, general counsel for Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones, told reporters last week that the U.S. government needs to work harder to impose consequences, including sanctions, to stop authoritarian governments from targeting journalists.
“For a country that cares about and believes in press freedom, we should put this front and center. If a journalist is taken away and deemed wrongfully detained, the U.S. government needs to face immediate consequences,” he said.
Although he had never met Gershkovich in person, Beckett said he got to know the journalist through conversations with family, friends and colleagues.
“We know he’s a great journalist. He’s proven to be an extraordinary young man who has shown resilience and perseverance in the face of all this,” Beckett said.
Follow us on Google news ,Twitter , and Join Whatsapp Group of thelocalreport.in
