You're reading: Journalists celebrate with trek to Yanukovych’s luxury estate

Sixty journalists refuse Journalist Day gifts from the president's press secretary demanding instead to see President Viktor Yanukovych's posh residence.

The 60 journalists came, looked, nearly got run over by a speeding presidential motorcade and then left – all without succeeding in their mission to see the inside of President Viktor Yanukovych’s Mezhyhirya luxury estate.

Kyiv journalists chose the morning of June 6, the professional Day of Journalists holiday in Ukraine, to pay Yanukovych a visit and remind him of his year-old, unfulfilled promise to open the doors to Mezhyhirya and let the public see how he lives.

Yanukovych made the promise – perhaps impulsively and perhaps insincerely, as events have shown – during a press conference at which he was trying to deflect questions about how a multi-million-dollar state-owned estate ended up under his private control for his private use.

The visit 15 kilometers north of the capital was the idea of the Stop Censorship movement.

A series of investigative articles by the Ukrainska Pravda website chronicled how companies close to Yanukovych took control of the 140-hectare residence through complicated schemes and paying a small price for it.

Earlier this year, the Kyiv Post reported that two firms close to Yanukovych’s inner circle in 2010 alone imported goods worth nearly $20 million, allegedly to make the living easier at Mezhyhirya.

After journalists informed local authorities about the planned picket, a court issued a ruling banning pickets in the village on the grounds that “it would bother the locals.”

The journalists went anyway. Although the state security near the entrance to the residence was quite relaxed, even allowing journalists to peak into the residence over its gates.

However, the journalists never got to meet the president. Around 9 a.m., Yanukovych took off from his place and whizzed past reporters in his high-speed, four-car motorcade.

Instead, presidential press secretary Darka Chepak stopped to greet the journalists by attempting to give out flowers and tempt them with a huge cake.

Later in the day, Yanukovych reaffirmed his promise to invite journalists to Mezhyhirya “when the time comes,” but noted he’s a very busy man.

Kyiv Post staff writer Yuriy Onyskhiv can be reached at [email protected]

(Photos by Yaroslav Debelyi)