Moscow | Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, famous for boycotting a Russian state channel newspaper with a poster against the attack in Ukraine, was sentenced to a new fine on Monday for denouncing the conflict.
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She was found guilty by an administrative court in Moscow of “defaming” the Russian army.I She said in her account on Telegram that Ovsiannikova will pay a fine of 40 thousand rubles (about 650 euros at the current exchange rate).
Her lawyer, Dmitry Zakvatov, told AFP that the journalist was sentenced based on a message she posted on Facebook.
She had already been sentenced at the end of July to pay a fine for the same reason. Two convictions less than six months apart pave the way for a criminal case, with much heavier potential legal consequences.
MI Ovsiannikova, who remains highly critical of the attack in Ukraine despite legal threats, shared the text of her defense, all in irony, which she read before a judge on Monday.
“I admit it’s good […] America and Europe that has led to the fact that in Russia there is no longer any freedom of expression, an independent court, or free elections, or that people are imprisoned for calling for peace,” she specifically said.
MI Ovsiannikova rose to fame in mid-March after appearing on the newsgroup of a pro-Kremlin TV channel for which she worked. During her speech, she carried a banner denouncing the attack in Ukraine and the “propaganda” of the power-controlled media.
Pictures of his gesture spread around the world. Many people praised his courage in suppressing any critical voice in Russia.
However, she is not unanimous within the Russian opposition, and some still blame her for her years working for the Pervy Kanal, the Kremlin’s mouthpiece.
After working several months abroad, mainly in the German newspaper Die FeltShe announced in early July that she had returned to Russia to settle a custody dispute over her two children.
