Dnipro JSC coordinator Nataliya Nazarova: “Our protective equipment rental point is very popular”

Thirty-six sets, in particular, certified body armor with the inscription PRESS, helmets, and tactical first-aid kits, have already been provided for free temporary use to media workers going to the hostilities zones over almost a year of operation of the protective equipment rental point on the basis of the Dnipro Journalists’ Solidarity Center (JSC) of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU).

“Journalists from local media turn to the Dnipro JSC. Together with volunteers, they go to the front lines to deliver aid to the soldiers, communicate with the soldiers, and record their stories. We give equipment to photographers who record Russian crimes, to filming crews who work with foreign journalists in the east of Ukraine and the de-occupied territories,” says Nataliya Nazarova, the coordinator of the Dnipro JSC.

The services of the rental point are also used by media workers covering the war in Ukraine for foreign publications. A Polish freelance journalist and photographer, Sebastian has been working in the Donetsk Region for a long time using the protective equipment received at the JSC. As a director, he prepares two documentaries about the war and cooperates with many Polish publications and the BBC TV channel.

“Dnipro is a city from where journalists go to the war zone on business trips and where they return to. That is why our protective equipment rental point is very popular. Last week, we issued a bulletproof vest with a helmet and a first aid kit to the Dnipro fixer Kostiantyn Karnoza, who is accompanying a French television documentary maker. By the way, Kostiantyn is not contacting us for the first time. In April, he worked along the entire front line from Kharkiv to Kherson with a German photographer who prepared materials for Welt, Spiegel, and other German publications,” the JSC coordinator says.

She also explains to all journalists working in the Dnipropetrovsk Region that if they need protective equipment for work, they should use it for free for up to one month. To do this, it is necessary to provide a copy of the press card (Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) accreditation) and passport and conclude an Act of acceptance and transfer to the rental point of the Dnipro JSC.

Call the Dnipro JSC by dialing 050 919 8479 (JSC coordinator Nataliya Nazarova). The Center’s address is 8 Starokozatska Street.

ABOUT JSC

The Journalists’ Solidarity Centers is an initiative of the NUJU implemented with the support of the International and European Federations of Journalists and UNESCO. The initiative is designated to help media representatives working in Ukraine during the war. The Centers operate in Kyiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipro and provide journalists with organizational, technical, legal, psychological, and other types of assistance.

ABOUT UNESCO

UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. It contributes to peace and security by promoting international cooperation in education, sciences, culture, communication, and information. UNESCO promotes knowledge sharing and the free flow of ideas to accelerate mutual understanding. It is the coordinator of the UN Action Plan on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, which aims to create a free and safe environment for journalists and media workers, thus strengthening peace, democracy, and sustainable development worldwide. UNESCO is working closely with its partner organizations in Ukraine to provide support to journalists on the ground.

The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this digest do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area or its authorities or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this digest and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit to the organization.

Dnipro JSC information service