JOURNALISTS and supporters around the world are standing in solidarity with Evan Gershkovich as his shameful detention reaches its hundredth day.
Messages of support for the jailed Wall Street Journal reporter – who remains caged in Russia on bogus charges – are flooding social media.
The US journalist, 31, was captured by evil Vladimir Putin's secret police in March – yet Russian officials have offered no evidence to back up their allegations.
Supporters of press freedom have today been urged to "stand with Evan" and show their support as he has now been wrongly detained for 100 days.
Social media users were urged to fill their feeds with messages of support for the journalist – using #IStandWithEvan – at 3.30pm to create a "social storm".
Many have shared photos wearing t-shirts with the hashtag on, while others held up signs.
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Evan has been held for more than 13 weeks on what the US government and The Wall Street Journal say are bogus and baseless claims of espionage.
Putin's arrest of Evan has previously been branded a "cowardly act" as the dictator desperately tries to escape accountability over his war in Ukraine.
And international pressure is mounting for the reporter to finally be released from prison.
His employers called the arrest "a vicious affront to a free press" that "should spur outrage in all free people and governments throughout the world".
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“No reporter should ever be detained for simply doing their job," The Journal added.
In a letter to readers today, Journal editor-in-chief Emma Tucker branded Evan's arrest as a "brazen violation of press freedom" and called for his "immediate release".
"Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until Evan is released," wrote Tucker.
She added: "In the days since Evan was arrested we have been inspired by the support that you, our readers, have provided.
"It has helped us to keep Evan’s plight at the top of the news agenda.
"As we reflect on this difficult milestone, we encourage you to continue sharing Evan’s reporting and the latest updates on his situation."
Evan's parents Mikhail Gershkovich and Ella Milman – who fled the Soviet Union for the US – have only been able to briefly speak to him in person once since he was detained.
But along with his sister Danielle, they have been sending letters in a bid to keep his spirits up.
Ella told the Journal: "I rely on President Biden's promise to bring Evan back, I think on his team and their expertise.
"He's an American boy. Bringing him back I think is a team effort."
But with the conviction rate at almost 100 per cent in Russia, Ella admitted she holds little hope for his case.
She said when she and Mikhail were able to speak to their son in a Moscow court, they were thrilled.
HOW TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT
YOU can show your support for Evan Gershkovich by downloading these images to use on your social media accounts.
They can be used on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and Instagram as profile photos, banners or posts.
Use these links to download the images and upload them to your social media:
- Twitter Banner | Twitter Profile (How to update your Twitter profile.)
- Instagram Post | Instagram Stories (How to update your Instagram profile.)
- LinkedIn Cover | LinkedIn Profile (How to update your LinkedIn profile.)
- Facebook Cover | Facebook Profile (How to update your Facebook profile.)
You can add the hashtag #IStandWithEvan to your posts to express support – with people encouraged to share messages and pictures across all social media today.
Ella added: "I was just beside myself, so happy. We were smiling and laughing and the guard brought me back to reality – I'm in a courtroom, my son is in this cage and I had to realise where I was because I lost myself in that conversation
"I was so happy to see him."
The Russian-speaking 31-year-old was arrested on a reporting trip to the central Russian city of Yekaterinburg on March 29 and accused of espionage.
It is the first time Russia has brought a spy case against an overseas journalist since the end of the Cold War, and he faces a jail term of up to 20 years if convicted.
Washington has repeatedly stated that Evan is not a spy and has never worked for the government.
His "wrongful detention", according to US officials, is a method of "hostage diplomacy" designed to give Russia leverage at the bargaining table.
Evan had been based in Russia for almost six years and was accredited by the Russian Foreign Ministry to work as a journalist.
Russian officials are yet to provide any evidence to back up their claims behind the reason for his arrest.
On Monday, US Ambassador to Russia, Lynee Tracey, visited him in the notorious hell-hole of Lefortovo prison – the first permitted meeting between Evan and a US official since April.
The ambassador reported he was "in good health and remains strong, despite his circumstances."
Last week, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken promised they were focused on freeing Evan and a fellow American also accused of spying.
"We are continuing to explore ways to bring him home—Paul Whelan as well—and many other Americans who are being detained in different parts of the world in an arbitrary fashion.”
"We’ve brought a lot of Americans home over the last two and a half years," he said.
"Evan is at the front and centre in our thinking."
In early April, Evan appeared in court to plead not guilty and since then US officials have been largely blocked from visiting the jailed reporter.
On June 22, a Moscow court upheld a request from Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) to extend the reporter's pre-trial detention to at least August 30.
Evan stood tall inside a glass cage as he lost his latest appeal to be released from the sinister high-security prison while awaiting a trial that has no set date.
COMPLETELY UNJUSTIFIED
The Wall Street Journal responded to the ruling: "Although the outcome was expected, it is no less an outrage that his detention continues to be upheld."
The distinguished reporter bravely smiled at his parents – Soviet-born Jewish refugees – who had travelled from their home in US to support him.
His mother, Ella Millman, said outside the court: "I want to scream and say ‘Give me back my son!'
"It’s very hard, but I will be there smiling. I will be smiling for Evan, and they are not going to see my tears."
Emma Tucker, the Wall Street Journal's editor in chief called his detention "completely unjustified".
In a statement following his arrest, she said: "The actions of the Russian government are completely unjustified. Evan is a member of the free press who right up until he was arrested was engaged in newsgathering. Any suggestions otherwise are false.
"We will carry on doing everything in our power to secure Evan’s release."
In May, British MPs piled pressure on Russia to release Evan from prison, as politicians and journalists around the world have come together to fight for his release.
In a letter to his parents after his arrest, Evan's spirits remained high: "I read. I exercise. And I am trying to write. Maybe, finally, I am going to write something good.
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"Mum, you unfortunately, for better or worse, prepared me well for jail food."
The Wall Street Journal and Evan's family have issued a worldwide appeal for readers to show their support.
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