“Politicians in Europe could take patronage over Serhii!” Olena Tsyhipa, wife of russian-imprisoned journalist Serhii Tsyhipa

Last week, Olena Tsyhipa worked in Brussels together with the Civilians in Captivity non-governmental organization at the invitation of the international human rights organization Front Line Defenders. During these days, the Ukrainian delegation held a series of official meetings with representatives of Czechia, Sweden, Austria, and other European countries, during which they discussed specific mechanisms for facilitating the process of releasing civilians illegally detained by russia. The activist told the information service of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) about the advocacy trip.

“Our people in captivity are like a dying battery. Their time is running out; their health is not being replenished every day. We must act quickly! Representatives of many European countries have expressed interest in providing assistance. However, not everyone understands what specific steps could contribute to solving this problem,” noted Olena Tsyhipa. According to her, European partners can primarily help overcome information isolation by disseminating information about illegally detained Ukrainians on social networks and during public speeches.

“Each of them has social networks, has their own followers. And suppose they post, for example, that they met with us. In that case, this will significantly help in further advocacy work,” she emphasized.

Strategic communication initiatives

“Politicians in Europe could take patronage over Serhii!” Olena Tsyhipa, the wife of imprisoned journalist Serhii Tsyhipa.

During the Brussels meetings, the parties discussed a number of specific initiatives aimed at raising the international community’s awareness of the problem of civilian hostages; among the key projects was creating documentary films about the families of hostages with the subsequent organization of public viewings and discussions, holding art exhibitions, organizing thematic conferences and public discussions with the participation of families of civilian hostages, etc.

“With the help of cultural projects, we can organize an information event in any country that actualizes the issue of illegal detention of civilian citizens of Ukraine,” said Olena Tsyhipa.

In her opinion, representatives of European political circles could take under their patronage specific civilian hostages, in particular, Serhii Tsyhipa: talk about him, contact international institutions, demand his release, and include this issue on the agenda of international negotiations.

Since the journalist was transferred from the colony to Moscow, Olena has been able to correspond with him twice a week via the electronic system called Zona-Telecom. While Serhii Tsyhipa was in the colony, communication became significantly more difficult as one letter could be on its way for months. According to her, the russian side explains the delays by the need to censor correspondence, but the reliability of these explanations raises reasonable doubts.

During her stay in Brussels, the wife of the illegally imprisoned journalist also met with Marta Berendii, a Ukrainian public figure who knows Serhii Tsyhipa personally through joint work.

“She published information about our meeting on social networks and expressed deep concern about Serhii‘s fate and readiness to join further advocacy activities,” said Olena Tsyhipa.

Civilian hostages must be put on exchange lists

Olena Tsyhipa expressed concern about the negotiation process on the exchange of Ukrainian prisoners. She stressed the critical importance of including civilian hostages in the all-for-all formula, drawing attention to the catastrophic conditions of civilian hostages.

“These people do not receive proper medical care, suffer from inadequate nutrition, and are systematically subjected to various types of violence. We have documented numerous cases of serious injuries, including broken ribs and loss of teeth as a result of torture,” she said.

The problem of post-traumatic rehabilitation of Ukrainian civilians

A separate area of ​​work of Civilians in Captivity is assistance in the rehabilitation of released civilian hostages. Olena Tsyhipa focused on the existence of a systemic imbalance in this issue.

“Currently, servicemen released from captivity receive rehabilitation assistance from veterans’ funds. However, for civilians who also survived captivity and need comprehensive rehabilitation, such mechanisms are absent,” she noted.

According to Olena, the organization seeks to find international partners to ensure proper rehabilitation of released civilian hostages, and this is one of the priority areas of their activity. The activist confirmed the unchanging position of the Civilians in Captivity regarding the continuation of systematic advocacy work at all levels,” from national to international.

“We will continue negotiations, appeals, and correspondence with both Ukrainian official institutions and international partners. Our key task is to ensure that no one forgets any illegally detained citizen of Ukraine, and in particular — my husband, Serhii Tsyhipa, who is still waiting to return home,” she summed up.

What is known about Serhii Tsyhipa?

According to the NUJU, Serhii Tsyhipa (born August 10, 1961) is a member of the Union and the organizer of the Tavria Games festival. He held the position of deputy editors-in-chief in a number of national publications and conducted journalistic investigations. In 2008, an attempt was made on him. He participated in the Revolution of Dignity in 2015-2017. He served in the Special Operations Forces and holds the rank of major.

The russian occupiers kidnapped Serhii Tsyhipa on March 12, 2022, on charges of “espionage.” By the decision of the occupation Simferopol “court” on October 6, 2023, he received a 13-year prison sentence. On February 14, 2024, the appeals “court” upheld this sentence. On April 8, 2024, Serhii Tsyhipa was transferred to the territory of russia.

In March 2025, the russian Court of Cassation also upheld the 13-year sentence. “Serhii behaved very well, performed well. The sentence was left unchanged. But we did not expect anything else,” says Olena.

On January 23, 2025, at the proposal of the Crimean journalist and NUJU secretary, Mykola Semena, the Board of the Union awarded Serhii Tsyhipa a journalistic for steadfastness and loyalty to the profession.

NUJU Information Service