(CJES/IFEX) – Andrei Kulgun, a photojournalist with the newspaper “Delovoi Peterburg”, was beaten in St. Petersburg on 3 April 2007. “Delovoi Peterburg” editor-in-chief Andrei Yershov told CJES the attack occurred as Kulgun and his colleague Mikhail Svetov tried to cover a meeting of shareholders of the pig farm Novy Svet. Although the journalists showed the […]
(CJES/IFEX) – Andrei Kulgun, a photojournalist with the newspaper “Delovoi Peterburg”, was beaten in St. Petersburg on 3 April 2007.
“Delovoi Peterburg” editor-in-chief Andrei Yershov told CJES the attack occurred as Kulgun and his colleague Mikhail Svetov tried to cover a meeting of shareholders of the pig farm Novy Svet. Although the journalists showed the security guards their press IDs, they were not allowed to enter the meeting room and they had to stand outside. “At that time, representatives of the enterprise Novy Svet and the holding company Faeton came out, arguing about something. When the photojournalist started filming them, he was approached by two security guards, who began beating him,” said Yershov. The journalists ran to their vehicle, on which the words “Delovoi Peterburg” were written in large letters. However, the security guards jumped at the car, trying to break its window, and when the journalists drove off, the guards got into their own car and chased them for a long time.
Kulgan was injured and the newspaper’s car was damaged in the attack, and materials for the planned article were never collected. “Delovoi Peterburg” has managed to find out that the guard who beat the journalist was working for the private security firm Partitet.
“Andrei Kulgun had his injuries documented at a doctor’s office. We have reported the incident to the prosecutor’s office and the local police and we have also called the security firm. A representative of that firm came to the editorial office and said the firm will pay for the car repairs, but that the photojournalist should withdraw his complaint and tell police he had injured himself by falling down,” said Yershov.
The journalists refused to accept those conditions and contacted the holding company Faeton, who hired the security firm. Faeton representatives suggested considering an amicable agreement. “We accepted that proposal and made a contract, but asked for an apology, compensation for the moral damage done to our staff member, and full compensation for the cost of repairing the newspaper’s car. We are now waiting for the holding company’s lawyer to consider these proposals and say whether the holding company agrees to fulfil them or not. If the company refuses, we will press our case in the prosecutor’s office and will demand that the attackers be prosecuted for impeding the journalist’ professional activities,” said Yershov.
Yershov also told CJES it is getting more and more difficult for journalists to work and this is not the only incident in which “Delovoi Peterburg” journalists have been prevented from working. “A week prior to that incident, the same journalist was accredited to cover a session of the St. Petersburg legislative assembly and photographed a parliamentarian. The parliamentarian did not like the way Andrei [Kulgun] was photographing him, and attacked him, demanding that the photo be erased from the flash card. However, the parliamentarian apologized after the editorial board intervened in the situation,” said Yershov.
The newspaper’s editor-in-chief also reported another attack on a “Delovoi Peterburg” journalist, which occurred in 2006, when journalist Yelena Yakovleva suffered mistreatment at the hands of the Special Purpose Detachment of the Militia (Otryad Militsii Osobogo Naznacheniya, OMON) police, while photographing a national Bolshevik rally.
