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The Tribunal for Putin (T4P) global initiative was set up in response to the all-out war launched by Russia against Ukraine in February 2022.

Two years ago the TV channels controlled by V. Medvedchuk got the first “temnik”

02.01.2004   

“Temnik” is a document containing the recommendations about the elucidation of the most important events in social and political life of the country.

Almost a year ago such “plans” of journalists’ work were discussed at the Parliamentary hearings, where they were acknowledged to be a form of censorship. “Temniks” were also strictly criticized by the PACE and other European institutions.

Yet, the “temniks” did not disappear, they just changed the form. The demands became less categorical, for example: “this topic is very important and urgent”, “we ask to comment this event in details”, etc.

Yesterday “Ukrainska Pravda” got an interesting document signed by Vasylyev, the head of the Main directorate of informational policy. The short letter is addressed to “press-secretaries, heads of press-services, heads of PR departments of oblast administrations and Sevastopol town administration, to head of the Committee in charge of information of the Crimean Autonomous Republic”.

It is noteworthy that the Kyiv city administration was not included into the list of addressees. Apparently, the metropolitan power has “a special status” regulated, in this case, not by laws, but by the personality of the city mayor. Certainly, Omelchenko would be not be pleased with such a letter.

The document is very short, so we will adduce it completely: “Respected colleagues! We want to present to your attention the articles published on 3 December in the newspaper “Diplomaticheskiy mir”: “Azarov: shadow economy recedes, the home investments increased twice” and “If Proshenko were the “minister of truth”…”, in which the actual questions of internal politics are elucidated”. Further the two mentioned articles were quoted.

The newspaper “Diplomaticheskiy mir” is published by the printing house “Fokus sobytiy” in Russian with participation of the General directorate in charge of foreign representations.

It is interesting that the articles were quoted not only in Russian, but also in the Ukrainian translation.

Well, the respect of the officials to the Ukrainian language is praiseworthy, especially when it is connected with paper work of the state organs. Yet, the articles were published in Russian. And, naturally, all officials, from Donetsk to Lviv, know the Russian language.

So, Mr. Vasylyev’s agency wasted the efforts for the translation vainly, especially if to take into account the fact that the articles were distributed only “for perfunctory familiarization”.

According to the Constitution, Presidential Administration is a consultative auxiliary organ at the President of Ukraine. This organ must assist the President in his work, and nothing else!

Instead of this the “translators” from the President’s office concentrate the attention of regional PR departments on the interview of first vice-Prime-Minister Azarov and… the transcript of the wiretapped talk of MP Poroshenko with manager of “5 kanal” Lisovskiy.

In the context of the informational war aimed at discrediting of Yushchenko and his brothers-in-arms, it should be logical to publish the records in the “tamed” mass media, for example, “1+1”.

There is another question: what connection with all this has the Presidential Administration? Undoubtedly, any official from the Presidential Administration or an oblast state administration has the right, as every other person, to be interested in sex, criminal events and political scandals. But how the familiarization with such information may assist to the President in his work? After all, the letter was not private, it was written on the letterhead of the Presidential Administration…

The Main directorate of informational policy of the Presidential Administration for the umpteenth time refused to comment to “Ukrainska pravda” the appearance of new “temnik”.

(“Ukrainska pravda”, 11 December 2003)

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