Imprisoned antiwar journalist Maria Ponomarenko is on the verge of suicide, lawyer warns

RU

Maria Ponomarenko, a journalist sentenced in February 2023 to six years in prison under Russia’s wartime censorship laws, is now on the verge of suicide, her lawyer has told independent human rights project OVD-Info. Ponomarenko’s employer, RusNews, also reports that she is currently on a dry hunger strike.

During her last court hearing, Ponomarenko showed her lawyer stitches on a vein in the bend of her elbow, explaining that she had cut herself due to ongoing mistreatment by prison officials. In late February, during a phone call with her daughter, the journalist reportedly asked for forgiveness “for everything” and hinted at suicidal intentions.

RusNews has published two short letters from Ponomarenko, in which she states that she has “no strength left” and pleads for help. “There’s no one to talk to here, censorship won’t allow anything [through] that truly matters, and the pain is so overwhelming that I doubt I can endure it,” one letter reads.