Posthumously recognized, Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna has been awarded the American Oxi Courage Award for her bravery.
This was announced by former Ukrainian Ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, on Facebook following a meeting with the leadership of The Washington Oxi Day Foundation.
Markarova noted that the Oxi Day Foundation was established in 2011 to commemorate the heroism of the Greek people, who in 1940 responded "Oxi" (no) to Nazi Germany's demand to surrender. The foundation annually awards the Oxi Courage Award for displays of courage in the modern world.
“In previous years, the award has been given to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (2022), the non-profit organization Save Ukraine, which returns abducted Ukrainian children from Russia, and our talented hero of the Euromaidan, Ruslana Lyzhychko. This year, the Oxi Courage Award will be posthumously awarded to the slain Ukrainian journalist and human rights activist Victoria Roshchyna,” Markarova wrote.
Victoria Roshchyna went missing on August 3, 2023, in a territory temporarily occupied by Russia, where she was reporting.
In May 2024, Russia acknowledged that it had detained Roshchyna. The Russian Ministry of Defense sent a letter confirming this to her father, Volodymyr Roshchyn.
On October 10, 2024, it was revealed that Roshchyna died during a transfer from Taganrog to Moscow.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, which communicated with her father, she died on September 19.
A criminal case has been opened regarding the death of the Ukrainian journalist for violations of the laws and customs of war and intentional murder.
An investigation by 12 media outlets from six countries, led by the French consortium Forbidden Stories, revealed that Roshchyna's body was returned home without some internal organs and showed numerous signs of torture.
A forensic examination conducted in July revealed a number of injuries that had not been previously reported.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posthumously awarded journalist Victoria Roshchyna the Order of Freedom. A farewell ceremony for the journalist, who was killed in Russian captivity, was held in Kyiv on August 8, and she was buried at Baikove Cemetery.
