Zaluzhnyi signs amendments to rules of accreditation of journalists during martial law
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi approves amendments to the order on the rules of accreditation of journalists during martial law.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to Detector Media.
According to the amendments published on the website of the Ministry of Defense, accredited media representatives are now allowed to work unaccompanied in public places in the "yellow" zone, which is freely accessible to the civilian population, within the route agreed by the commander (commander) of the group of troops. The permit can be obtained on the basis of an application from an accredited media outlet, which will be reviewed within three calendar days of its submission.
The work of certain accredited media representatives in the "red" zone may be allowed only if accompanied by the relevant officials as an exception, "in order to impartially inform the population and the world community about war crimes committed by the Russian Federation, at the request of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine or the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine or the relevant commander (commander) of the group of troops."
When working in the "red" zone, media representatives are obliged to submit the collected photo and video materials for verification of the presence of restricted information, as well as to coordinate their distribution and publication with the responsible official.
In addition, paragraph 1.10, which referred to the immediate termination of the work of a media representative at a military facility "in the event of a situation that may threaten his life and health...", was removed from Annex 1. As IMI Director Oksana Romaniuk explained earlier, this was the clause that military commanders used as an excuse to deny journalists access to the "red" zone.
It should be noted that Annex 4 of the same order states that the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other components of the defense forces are not responsible "for the safety, life and health, return, as well as insurance of life, health and property of public figures whose opinions are listened to by the public (opinion leaders, bloggers, etc.)," so this is the responsibility of the accredited media representative.
Among other approved changes: accreditation of journalists will be carried out for a period of up to 12 months.
As a reminder, starting March 3, 2023, Ukraine introduced amended rules for journalists to obtain accreditation during martial law. Commanders in their areas of responsibility defined three zones for media representatives. In particular, in the "red" area, the work of accredited media was completely prohibited, and in the "yellow" area, it was possible to work only if accompanied by a press officer. In addition, a new press card was approved with a validity period of up to 6 months.
