Mr. Mohammad Zahoor 

Publisher - Kyiv Post     

 [email protected]

Mr. Zahoor,

We read with disappointment that the Kyiv Post has fired its editor Brian Bonner for refusing to kill a story about a prominent minister in Ukraine. We have been a partner with the Kyiv Post on the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting project, a regional consortium of investigative centers, news media and journalists. We are also working journalists in SE Europe, the Caucasus and surrounding areas.

The Kyiv Post has always represented to us an independent voice in Ukraine no matter who ran the government. In the past three years under Mr. Bonner's direction it has significantly improved its standards, depth and quality. When we worked together on a project on offshore registry agents, the Post was a reliable partner who contributed significantly to our joint work.

Independent newspapers are both rare and important in this region. But independence must be guarded carefully. You, as an owner of an independent newspaper, have a responsibility to safeguard that independence and to provide a public service to the people of Ukraine. While editors and reporters are not always right in their actions, they must be protected and allowed to exercise their best judgment. A paper is judged by its judgment not in one case but over time.

If you did disagree with Mr. Bonner on his judgment in this case, there are other remedies such as posting a letter from the aggrieved party in the newspaper. This is commonly how newspapers handle such disputes. Firing the editor is the worst possible move. Whether you intended to fire Mr. Bonner earlier for other reasons or not makes no difference. You now have left the appearance that you are not serving the people but rather the government and your own business interests. That will damage your reputation and the reputation of the paper.

As publisher of the Kyiv Post, you have lost an editor and the support of staff -- staff that represents some of the finest journalists in Ukraine. We encourage you to reconsider your decision and to do the right thing. You have the power to remedy this situation. The health of one of Ukraine's important papers is at stake. This especially looks bad as Kyiv is set to host the 7th Global lnvestigative Reporting Conference this October.

In the long run, we believe good journalism is good business. We encourage you to act in the best interest of the people of Ukraine but also in your own best interest. We encourage you to resolve your dispute with Mr. Bonner and support the staff of the paper in their work.

Sincerely,

OCCRP Members:

Drew Sullivan, OCCRP Advising Editor, Bosnia-Herzegovina

Rosemary Armao, OCCRP Advising Editor, USA

Mihai Munteanu, OCCRP Journalist, Romania

Djordje Padejski, Center for Investigative Reporting, Serbia

Paul Cristian Radu, OCCRP Executive Director, Romania

Edik Baghdasaryan, HETQ Editor, Armenia

Stanimir Vaglenov, Bulgarian Investigative Journalism Center

John Holland, OCCRP Advising Editor, Serbia

Azhar Kaljumic, Editor, Center for Investigative Reporting, Bosnia-Herzegovina

Stevan Dojcinovic, Center for Investigative Reporting, Serbia

Miranda Patrucic, Center for Investigative Reporting, Bosnia-Herzegovina

Aleksandar Bozhinovski, OCCRP, Macedonia

David Kaplan, OCCRP Editor at large, USA

Alexenia Dimitrova, 24 Hours, Bulgaria

Lasha Kveseladze, Rustavi TV, Georgia

Tamas Bodaky, OCCRP, Hungary