The court did not overturn the ban on publishing an investigation into the brother of the SBI director
Serhiy Vovk, a judge of the Pechersky District Court of Kyiv, refused to lift the ban on the publication of an investigation by “Slidstvo.Info and the Anti-Corruption Action Center regarding 143 properties that, according to the journalists, belonged to the brother of Oleksiy Sukhachov, director of the State Bureau of Investigations. This was reported by “Ukrainska Pravda,” citing the Anti-Corruption Action Center.
The Anti-Corruption Center stated that the court rejected the arguments of the organization and “Slidstvo.Info” regarding the illegality of such a restriction. According to the Anti-Corruption Center, the judge ruled that the petitioners had not proven that the need for the ban on disseminating the information no longer existed.
“Vovk rejected the arguments of the Anti-Corruption Center and ‘Slidstvo.Info’ regarding the illegality of this decision. He believes that the organizations allegedly failed to prove that the need for such a ban no longer existed. Although all the information used by the journalists is publicly available and anyone can access it,” the Anti-Corruption Center stated.
The Center also noted that the court did not agree with the arguments regarding restrictions on journalistic activity, since, according to the judge, the ruling does not prohibit journalists from working. At the same time, the Center for Press Freedom emphasized that journalistic activity, in particular, involves the dissemination of information of public importance.
According to the organization, the company “Parkovy-2” no longer mentions the brother of the SBI director in the complaint itself, although the motion for preliminary relief and the court’s ruling referred to a ban on disseminating information specifically about him. Olena Shcherban, deputy executive director of the Center for Media and Political Studies, believes that the ban and the lawsuit are intended to put pressure on journalists from the Center and “Slidstvo.Info.”
On July 17, eight Ukrainian media outlets published an investigation as part of “Initiative 143.” According to the journalists, Oleksiy Sukhachov’s brother purchased 143 properties from a Kharkiv-based developer between 2018 and 2020 at prices significantly below market value. The report also noted that the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) subsequently investigated this developer’s activities.
