Ukrainian journalists share stories of courage, survival and atrocities

First in a series

Journalists in war-torn Ukraine are telling stories of courage, survival and atrocities – often at the same time – while they themselves, their families and neighbors, are under siege by an invading Russian army.

They’re telling stories of a girl buying a used minibus to evacuate her parents out of Mariupol, refugees foraging for food among ruins and therapists helping children frightened by shattering bombs.

“We’re like a big family all working to keep local journalism alive in small cities and towns across Ukraine,” Yuliana Ohotnik said in a Zoom call with the Herald Wednesday from Kyiv.

She’s determined to keep writing and publishing vital information as the Russian army closes in. It’s all under the umbrella of the ABO Local Media Development Agency, a collaboration between 45 newspapers and 300 journalists spread across Ukraine. They are linked by a common website — Svoi.global — and now the Boston Herald, Lowell Sun and Fitchburg Sentinel.

“The atrocities are true! Sometimes you just can’t edit and read it. Especially the stories of the children,” she added. “But I want the world to know about Ukraine and the beautiful people here.”

A colleague, editor Valentyn Vladimirov, says the post office and printing presses are back up as of early April giving his readers in rural Kaharlyk 50 miles south of Kyiv news of the invasion.

“We suffered through the pandemic and came back to work and that’s when the war started,” he said through a translator. “Our newspaper is often the only means of communication.”

He works through “six or seven air raid alarms a day” and he worries about the future. But like his president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he’s resolute.

“All the nation is united, and you can feel the spirit,” said Vladimirov. “It gives you hope.”

Lexington’s Yanina Kisler, who escaped the Soviet Union in 1977 with her Ukrainian parents, is the lifeline between these heroic journalists. The electrical engineer is doing all she can to keep the local journalists reporting for all the world to read.

“I fear they are in great danger,” she said. “But it’s not just Ukraine that’s in danger. Ukraine is fighting a battle that is also the world’s battle.”