Vasyl Demyaniv suffered a head injury and underwent surgery as a result of the beating.
(IMI/IFEX) – In the evening of 23 March 2010, the editor of the twice-weekly newspaper “Kolomoyskiy Visnyk”, Vasyl Demyaniv, was brutally assaulted by several strangers. The incident took place in the eastern Carpathian (Ivano-Frankivsk) region of the Ukraine, according to the National Union of Journalists.
Demyaniv, 50, was on his way home when the strangers hit him over the head with a heavy object, fracturing his skull. The strangers then pushed him down and started kicking him.
Demyaniv was sent to the hospital, where he underwent a complicated surgery. He was diagnosed with a head injury and will need long-term treatment. IMI tried to contact Demyaniv, but the physicians did not allow him to speak.
The police are investigating the case and criminal proceedings have been opened.
His colleagues from the National Union of Journalists believe the assault is connected to Demyaniv’s professional activities. He has been critical of local authorities, who are co-founders of this newspaper and not once tried cutting its budget.
