President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated radio, television, and communications workers on their professional holiday and honored them with state awards.
“No matter what happens, our people always have the ability to receive the information they need and to speak with their loved ones. Wherever Ukrainians may be – even in temporarily occupied territories – they always have the opportunity to learn the real picture and stay connected with everyone,” the Head of State said.
The President thanked every journalist working in the areas of hostilities for their courage, as well as for their contribution to defending Ukraine’s independence and our people.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine will always honor the memory of media workers who have been killed during this war.
The President signed a decree awarding state honors to radio, television, and communications workers. Among the honorees are representatives of both Ukrainian and international media.
The Order of Merit, III class, was posthumously awarded to:
Olena Hubanova, correspondent of Ukraine’s International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform, and Yevhen Karmazin, camera operator of Ukraine’s International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform. They were killed in late October in Kramatorsk when a Russian drone struck their vehicle.
Kostiantyn Huzenko, photographer and participant in the Ukrainer project. After the start of the full-scale invasion, he worked with the “War Archive” project, documenting Ukrainians’ struggle for freedom, and served in the 35th Separate Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Ostrohradskyi. He was killed in early November in the east of Ukraine.
Antoni Lallican, photojournalist of the Hans Lucas agency (France). The 38-year-old journalist worked with numerous French and international outlets. He came to Ukraine in March 2022, documented the consequences of the war, and launched a project about the lives of residents of the Donetsk region. He was killed in early October as a result of a Russian FPV-drone attack on a journalists’ vehicle.
The Order of Merit, III class, was also awarded to: correspondent Inna Varenytsia (LB Publishing House), correspondent Olena Hnitetska (“Vhoru.Kherson”), photojournalist Ian Dobronosov (“Telegraph Media”), camera operator Darya Zyrianova (“We Are Ukraine”), freelance reporter Heorhii Ivanchenko, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Press Academy Andrii Kovalenko, Senior Correspondent Oleksandr Kolychev (“Ukraine’s International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform”), correspondent Yevhen Koptiev (“Voienkor” program), journalist Alina Makarchuk (Polish TVN 24), Ivanna Naida (General Producer, UNIAN TV), Reuters photojournalist in Ukraine Valentyn Ogirenko, 1+1 Studio Deputy General Director Serhii Popov, Channel 24 host Kateryna Soliar, ICTV Technical Director Volodymyr Kharchenko, correspondent of “National Information Systems” Svitlana Shekera and camera operator of “National Information Systems” Oleksandr Yanovskyi.
In addition, the Order of Princess Olga, III class, was awarded to Nataliia Sotnyk (Sonia Sotnyk), host at ROKS radio.