“Supporting the Ukrainian media during the war should be a priority for international organizations,” Sergiy Tomilenko in Krakow

“Maximum efforts should be made so that Ukraine is on the agenda of the international media, and the support of Ukrainian journalists and media during the war should be a stable priority for international organizations,” emphasized the President of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU), Sergiy Tomilenko, who is one of the speakers at the international conference and the RE:Cover campus, which started its work in Krakow on November 22.

Sergiy Tomilenko also noted that NUJU‘s priority is recommending that international donors support colleagues who are trying to provide information from the trenches or the media destroyed by the russians. The President of the NUJU thanked the International and European Federations of Journalists and UNESCO for the functioning of the network of Journalist Solidarity Centers (JSC), which provides emergency assistance to media workers.

More than 100 Ukrainian and international journalists and experts participate in the events organized by the authoritative German European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF). The campus and the conference started with a screening of a film about the Journalists in Residence – Kosovo program, which is partnered by the NUJU. The screening of the film was also attended by 12 journalists who, thanks to the program initiated by the ECPMF and financed by the governments of the Republic of Kosovo and Germany, received shelter in Kosovo while being able to carry out their usual work journalistic work.

“The absolute majority of Ukrainian journalists, editors, and media get to survive today thanks to the international support of the people’s right to receive information,” Sergiy Tomilenko emphasized in his speech.

NUJU‘s priority is to attract international financial donors to support colleagues who provide sustainable information to people in the frontline territories, “actually in the trenches.”

“Today, we see the revival of the press in these territories. Newspapers there often become the only means of informing the population,” said Sergiy Tomilenko.

He expressed his belief that international support for Ukrainian media will continue, because its reduction would mean limiting information to Ukrainians.

The program of the ECPMF events in Krakow is called RE:Cover and is scheduled for six days (November 22-26). It includes discussions about journalism, practical seminars, and a conference. These events are part of the Voices of Ukraine (VoU) program, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

NUJU Information Service