Grigory Pasko
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Grigory Mikhailovich Pasko (born 1962 in the village Kreshchenovka of the Kherson Oblast, currently Ukraine) is a Russian journalist and publisher of an environmental magazine.
| Grigory Pasko | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | 1962 |
| Occupation | journalist |
| Nationality | Russia |
| Subjects | ecology, politics |
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[edit] Life
Pasko was born to a teacher's family. He graduated from the journalism department of Lvov University in 1983 and worked as an investigative journalist and editor for “Boyevaya Vakhta” (Battle Watch), the in-house newspaper of the Russian Pacific Fleet. He worked together with Japanese journalists from the NHK TV network and the newspaper Asahi Shimbun that specializes in environmental issues. He had disclosed the dumping of nuclear waste by the Russian Navy’s in the Sea of Japan in 1993.[1]
[edit] Conviction
In November 1997 Pasko was arrested by FSB agents in Vladivostok. He was accused of espionage for publications on the environmental problems in the Japanese sea but found not guilty due to lack of evidence. He was found guilty of “abuse of his official position” but released immediately under a general amnesty [1]. He was recognized as a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International [2]
After several re-trails, the Court of the Pacific Fleet acquitted Pasko on all counts except espionage, and convicted him to four years of imprisonment for treason in December 25, 2001. He was released from detention in 2003 [2] and was only allowed to travel abroad 18 months after his release. [3]
[edit] Further work
Pasko is a member of the Russian PEN Center in Vladivostok. He received human rights award from Reporters without borders in 2002.
