An editor working at Russia state TV's Channel One walked behind an anchor of a live broadcast on Monday holding a sign that read "NO WAR. Stop the war. Do not believe propaganda they tell you lies here. Russians against war." (See video below.)
The protestor, Marina Ovsyannikova, who has worked for Channel One for a few years, was arrested, according to CNN, but her lawyer says "he still does not know her whereabouts."
From CNN:
Channel One's content is tightly controlled by the Russian government. President Vladimir Putin earlier this month signed a censorship bill that criminalizes "fake" information about the invasion of Ukraine, with a penalty of up to 15 years in prison for anyone convicted, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The Kremlin on Tuesday described Ovsyannikova's actions as "hooliganism," a criminal offense in Russia. …
Dmitry Zakhvatov [Ovsyannikova's lawyer] told CNN Tuesday he has been trying to locate her since her protest. Zakhvatov confirmed to CNN that Ovsyannikova is the woman seen on air holding the sign and that she is an editor for the channel."We didn't find her for now, but we are continuing to search," Zakhvatov said.
In a video Ovsyannikova circulated before she interrupted the propaganda broadcast, she said (according to CNN):
"What is happening now in Ukraine is a crime, and Russia is the aggressor country, and the responsibility for this aggression lies on the conscience of only one person. This man is Vladimir Putin.
"Unfortunately, for the past few years, I have been working on Channel One and doing Kremlin propaganda, and now I am very ashamed of it. It's a shame that I allowed to speak lies from the TV screens, ashamed that I allowed to zombify Russian people.
"I am ashamed that we kept silent in 2014, when all this was just beginning. We didn't go to rallies when the Kremlin poisoned Navalny, we just silently watched this anti-human regime and now the world has turned its back on us forever, and another ten generations of our descendants will not be able to wash away from the shame of this fraternal war.
"We are Russian people, thinking and smart, and it is only in our power to stop all this madness. Go to the rallies and do not be afraid! They can't transplant us all!"
