Japan Journalist Group Seeks Release of Reporter Held in Russia

Tokyo, Oct. 21 (Jiji Press)--The Japan Congress of Journalists on Wednesday urged Russia to ensure the safety and immediate release of a Japanese journalist detained in the country.

On Oct. 13, Russia's Federal Security Service, or FSB, announced the detention of a reporter for the Hokkaido Shimbun newspaper in Sakhalin in the country's Far East on suspicion of espionage. He has been held in Moscow.

"Freedom of the press is the cornerstone of democracy and the foundation of peacebuilding," the JCJ said in a statement.

The only Japanese media outlet with a permanent correspondent in Sakhalin has "contributed to fostering economic and private-sector exchanges between Hokkaido and the Russian Far East, as well as between Japan and Russia," the JCJ said of the newspaper based in the northernmost Japan prefecture.

"It is a vital mission of the media to report on the realities of war and their impact on society," the JCJ added.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]