MOSCOW, May 22 (RIA Novosti) – The fate of two LifeNews journalists detained in Ukraine remains unknown and they have not been allowed to consult lawyers and human rights officials after four days of captivity, a member of Russia’s Presidential Council on Human Rights told RIA Novosti from Kiev.
"Yesterday I was told that everything is alright. We’ve spread this information. But this morning, we’re feeling alarmed, because it is not clear where the guys currently are and why they haven’t been allowed to see anyone in these four days," Maxim Shevchenko said.
“We have a feeling that they could be beaten or that something else was done to them, since they are shown to us only on video,” he added.
No human rights defenders or lawyers have been allowed to visit the journalists or obtain credible information about their condition, Shevchenko told RIA Novosti.
"We are very concerned about the fate of Marat and Oleg. It’s pretty obvious for us this morning. If today the Ukrainian authorities do not show us our journalists, it will have very serious consequences – moral, humanitarian and human rights. We have a feeling that something could have happened to them," Shevchenko explained.
LifeNews journalists Oleg Sidyakin and Marat Saichenko were detained April 18 by the Ukrainian National Guard near the city of Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region. Ukrainian authorities accused them of promoting terrorism in the east. Russian authorities have demanded their immediate release.
On Wednesday, Head of the Duma Committee on Foreign Affairs Alexei Pushkov said that the detention of the journalists is an act of revenge for the truth they have shown, an attempt to hide the illegitimacy of the authorities in Kiev.
