On 8 November 2023, the Ukrainian investigative project Schemes said it had received a response to an information request sent to Ukraine’s parliament (also known as the Rada), in which it had asked for documents establishing the ban on journalists accessing the parliament building in times of martial law. According to Schemes, the Rada was not able to provide such a document, claiming that it had “not been created”.
Initially, Schemes reported, the parliament asked for an extended delay of 20 days to be able to provide the document, claiming that there was “a need to find information”, however the document was not provided even after the end of this time period. According to Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of the Rada, the decision to restrict journalists’ access to parliament was made at the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Stefanchuk said in a comment on the case to Schemes. He added that the decision was made based on recommendations by Ukraine’s security services, and that journalists would be able to enter the Rada “as soon as the level of danger falls”.
According to Schemes, the information on access restrictions for journalists published on the parliament’s website is related only to the Covid-19 pandemic, and there is no mention of martial law-related restrictions. The Rada recently opened a press center outside of its main building for MPs to hold briefings in, but this venue is not popular among the parliament’s members, the media outlet added.
Schemes reported that it had also sent an information request on the parliamentary restrictions to Ukraine’s State Security Administration (UDO) as well as to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), but did not receive a reply from either of the agencies.