Marina Ovsyannikova, the former editor of the Moscow propaganda channel “Pervij kanal” (“First Channel”), was detained in Russia on Wednesday, and a criminal case was initiated against her under the law that prohibits the dissemination of information that discredits the Russian army in the Kremlin’s view, her lawyer announced.
Ovsyannikova’s lawyer, Dmitry Zakhvatov, previously said that Russian state security services had searched Ovsyannikova’s home.
Such charges are punishable by up to ten years in prison.
Ovsyanikova was previously an editor at the Russian propaganda channel “Pervij kanal” for years.
However, on the evening of March 14, during the live news program “Vremya” (“Time”), when the presenter Ekaterina Andreyeva spoke about the government’s plans to soften the impact of sanctions, Ovsyannikova appeared behind her with a poster that read “NOWAR (no war). Stop the war, don’t believe the propaganda, you are being lied to here. Russians against war”.
Even before the campaign, Ovsyannikova recorded a video in which she apologized for participating in propaganda and called for an end to the war in Ukraine. The video was posted on social media.
Following this protest, Ovsyannikova was arrested and fined 30,000 rubles (approximately €250) by the court.
After the protest, Ovsyannikova spent some time outside of Russia and worked for the German newspaper “Die Welt” for three months. But in July, she returned to Russia, citing the need to see out a child custody dispute.
Since the protest on the live air, Ovsyannikova has been detained several times and administratively punished for opposing Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Ovsyannikova told the AFP news agency that she hoped the authorities would not pre-trial detention her, as she has two children.
On Wednesday, on the “Telegram” website, Ovsyannikova said that early in the morning, ten law enforcement officers searched her home.
“They scared my youngest daughter,” added Ovsyannikova.
The journalist said she was accused of spreading false information about the Russian army.
The criminal case against her was initiated after two Moscow courts sentenced Ovsyannikova to fines for discrediting the Russian army.
In mid-July, Ovsyannikova protested alone outside the Kremlin, holding a placard reading “Putin is a murderer.”
On Wednesday, she stated in “Telegram” that more than 350 children have already died in Ukraine.
“How many children have to die for you to stop?” she asked.
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