The Kyiv City State Administration (KCSA) has sent a submission to the President of Ukraine proposing to award journalist Victoria Roshchina the title of Hero of Ukraine posthumously. This was reported by Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Freedom of Speech, in a comment to the Institute of Mass Information (IMI).
Details of the petition and award procedure
Yaroslav Yurchyshyn received the KCSA's response to his parliamentary inquiry regarding the journalist's award, in which he raised the issue of granting her the highest state award posthumously.
According to the KCSA, the petition to award Victoria Roshchina was submitted by "UP Media" LLC on April 29, 2026. The city administration reviewed it in accordance with the procedure for submitting state awards. After agreement with the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine, the KCSA prepared and sent the relevant submission to the president, which has already been forwarded to the Office of the President.
"Now the ball is in the president's and the State Awards Commission's court", Yurchyshyn noted.
According to the People's Deputy, the initiative to award the journalist the title of Hero of Ukraine, which he supports along with Victoria Roshchina's family and the media representatives she collaborated with, has been ongoing for a significant time. Yurchyshyn expressed hope that a decision on the award would be made.
"We believe that Victoria's sacrifice, her willingness to be the voice of Ukrainians from the occupied territories, even at the cost of her own life, deserves such recognition."he told IMI.
Victoria Roshchina was a Ukrainian journalist who died while being held captive by Russia.
On July 14, 2026, "Ukrainska Pravda" published a statement from representatives of the Ukrainian media community, human rights defenders, and public figures regarding the posthumous awarding of the title Hero of Ukraine with the Order of the Golden Star to Victoria Roshchina. Collecting signatures for the appeal is ongoing.
