Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, killed in Russian captivity, named World Press Freedom Hero
Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, who was killed in Russian captivity, has been posthumously awarded the title of World Press Freedom Hero by the International Press Institute (IPI).
Source: IPI website
Details: The Press Freedom Hero award recognises journalists who have demonstrated unwavering dedication to press freedom.
Quote: "Roshchyna's death in Russian captivity on 19 September 2024 exposed the brutal treatment suffered by the dozens of Ukrainian journalists unjustly held by Russian authorities, and brought new urgency to the need to protect the press and secure accountability for attacks on journalists.
In naming Roshchyna a World Press Freedom Hero, IPI and IMS recognise her immense personal sacrifice in the pursuit of information and stories that must be told."
Details: This year's laureates of the World Press Freedom Hero award are:
- Viktoria Roshchyna (posthumously), Ukraine – journalist killed in Russian captivity on 19 September 2024;
- Mzia Amaglobeli, Georgia – co-founder and CEO of opposition outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti, sentenced to two years in August 2025;
- Martin Baron, United States – former editor of The Washington Post and The Boston Globe;
- Mariam Abu Dagga (posthumously), Palestine – freelance photojournalist killed on 25 August 2025 during an Israeli strike in southern Gaza;
- Gustavo Gorriti, Peru – founder and editor-in-chief of investigative outlet IDL-Reporteros;
- Jimmy Lai, Hong Kong – publisher and founder of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, repeatedly imprisoned since 2021;
- Tesfalem Waldyes, Ethiopia – co-founder and editor-in-chief of Ethiopia Insider, who has faced multiple arrests and now works in exile.
Background:
- In March 2022, Roshchyna was captured by Russian forces and held for 10 days in the temporarily occupied city of Berdiansk.
- In 2022, Roshchyna wrote a series of articles for Ukrainska Pravda from the temporarily occupied territories. Her work included stories about life in occupied Crimea during the war, the sham referendum in occupied Donetsk Oblast, and a photo report from the devastated city of Mariupol.
- On 25 July 2023, Roshchyna left Ukraine for Poland, planning to make the three-day journey via Russia to the occupied part of Ukraine's east.
- On 3 August 2023, Roshchyna went missing in Russian-occupied territory.
- It was not until May 2024 that Russia admitted to having detained Roshchyna. The Russian Ministry of Defence sent a letter confirming this to her father, Volodymyr Roshchyn.
- Russia delayed the repatriation of Roshchyna's body, which was only returned in February 2025.
- The Office of the Prosecutor General reported that Roshchyna's body bore multiple signs of torture and ill-treatment: abrasions, bruises, a broken rib and evidence of electrocution.
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