Olena Removska and Yulia Stest, journalists with the Crimea.Realities unit of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, have been named winners of the prestigious Ukrainian competition Honor of the Profession in the category, "Best coverage of resonating events."
The award is in recognition of the report, "They're Trying To Squeeze Out The Crimean Tatars," a radio program and text from March 2019 documenting mass searches and detentions among members of the Crimean Tatar community in Crimea. Russia forcibly annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014.
In addition to the top award, six other reports produced by the Ukrainian Service made the shortlist.
A national survey of news organizations released in association with the competition ranked the Ukrainian Service second for "trustworthiness" among 34 outlets polled, with a score of 61 percent.
The Honor of the Profession is an annual competition sponsored by Ukraine's National Media Association with the support of USAID and the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine. Judges reviewed 615 submissions in six main categories this year.
The award ceremony took place in Kyiv on July 16.