The head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Vasyl Malyuk criticized the actions of the employees of the Department for the Protection of National Statehood (DPNS), who monitored Bihus.Info journalists. Malyukʼs statement appeared after MPs of the Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian Parliament) summoned him for a report on the surveillance of journalists.
Malyuk stated that the monitoring of journalists of the Bihus.Info project by his subordinates is unacceptable.
"My position is unequivocal: the actions of individual employees cannot erase all the positive results achieved by SBU during the war and cast a shadow over every representative of the Service," Malyuk emphasized.
He stated that measures to combat organized drug crime led not only to receiving information about the involvement of one of the operators of the Bihus.Info project in the distribution of narcotic substances, but also to the public distribution of video materials. Malyuk noted that this is unacceptable, that is why he sent a petition for the dismissal of the Department for the Protection of National Statehood (DPNS) chairman Roman Semenchenko, which was signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky on January 31.
Malyuk emphasized that he would do "everything possible so that every mass media could work freely in Ukraine."
"Today, we are not just building a renewed SBU, but protecting democratic values, among which are freedom of speech and media independence. For me personally, this is a top priority from now on! This is what makes our country different from authoritarian Russia. And it will be different in the future," noted Malyuk.
Against this background, Malyuk recalled the contribution made by the Security Service of Ukraine to the approach of victory in the war with Russia. In particular, he noted about unique special operations, including the blowing up of not only the Crimean bridge, but also many military facilities deep in the Russian Federation. Therefore, he claims, it cannot be destroyed by the actions of "individual employees".
What preceded
On January 16, a video appeared on the Internet, where employees of the Bihus.Info investigation project are allegedly using grugs. The video was shot on a camera placed in a rented house where the employees had a corporate party. The video also included recordings of phone conversations of project workers. Journalists believe that they have been followed for at least several months.
The head of the project Denys Bigus, in a video address to the audience, announced the dismissal of the operators caught on video. Later, he added that journalists had been following his project for almost a year. SBU is investigating the illegal wiretapping of Bihus.Info employees. Also, the lawyers of the Bihus.Info editorial office appealed to the law enforcement officers with statements under several articles — in particular, regarding violation of privacy and obstruction of journalistsʼ activities.
In the investigation, which came out on February 5, the investigators said that the journalists were monitored by the State Security Department of the Security Service of Ukraine. More than 30 people participated in the operation, who were identified thanks to the video from the cameras of the hotel where the editorial office was located on December 27 of last year. In a telephone conversation with Bihus.Info, the dismissed head of the Department for the Protection of National Statehood (DPNS) Roman Semenchenko did not deny the involvement of (DPNS) in this operation. Journalists of Bihus.Info stated that the monitoring of them continued in recent days.
The Security Service of Ukraine, after the publication of Bihus.Infoʼs investigation into the surveillance of journalists, stated that among the clients of dealers through whom drugs were supplied to other people were some employees of Bihus.Info. In particular, the operator, who appeared in the criminal proceedings on the illegal production and storage of drugs.