The Sunday Show: Babchenko’s ‘Murder,’ Kolchenko’s Hunger Strike, Estonian President

✅ Truth vs. Security: Ukraine’s SBU Stages Murder of Arkady Babchenko

He was declared dead, then he was declared alive. The story of Russian opposition journalist Arkady Babchenko’s assassination sent shockwaves around the world. When the Ukrainian Security Service revealed that it was, in fact, a sting operation to expose a Russian ploy to assassinate Babchenko, along with some other people, many sighed with relief. But then another issue was put forward: is a government-staged murder damaging to journalism? We will discuss with Christopher Miller, a correspondent at RFE/RL and Committee to Protect Journalists and Gulliver Cragg, a correspondent at France 24.

Christopher Miller

Correspondent, RFE/RL and Committee to Protect Journalists

Gulliver Cragg

Correspondent, France 24

✅ Kolchenko Goes on Hunger Strike Demanding the Release of Sentsov

On May 14, Oleg Sentsov, the Ukrainian filmmaker imprisoned in Russia, announced a hunger strike. His sole condition for the end of it is the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners held in Russia and Russia-occupied Crimea. Nearly three weeks later, the concerns are rising for his deteriorating health. What’s more, Sasha Kolchenko, a left-wing activist detained and tried along with Sentsov, has now joined Sentsov and declared a hunger strike of his own.

✅ Estonian President on Ukraine’s Progress and Challenges

Russia and the conflict in Donbas were some of the key topics on the Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid’s agenda during her visit to Ukraine. During the trip, which kicked off on May 22, Kaljulaid traveled to the city of Kramatorsk in the Donbas region where she met with internally displaced persons. This engagement makes Kaljulaid the first head of a foreign state to visit conflict-affected regions in the Donbas. She also kindly found some time to speak with Hromadske on reforms, economy and Russian influence.

Kersti Kaljulaid

President of Estonia

✅ Techno and Conservatism: What's Dividing Georgia?

At the beginning of May, Georgian police had carried out raids in some of Tbilisi’s biggest nightclubs, with several people suspected of distributing drugs arrested as a result. That same night, on May 12, young Georgians came out in protest in demonstrations, which lasted a few days. These protests, in turn, caused resentment among local nationalist organizations who took to the streets for a counter-protest. Hromadske traveled to Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, to speak with representatives of both camps.