Nobel Prize will auction medal for Ukrainian refugees 0:35
London (CNN Business) --
The Russian journalist who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year says he will auction his medal to support Ukrainian refugees.
Novaya Gazeta director Dmitry Muratov said it was natural for him to sell his medal when he saw "injured and sick children" in need of "urgent treatment" following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to a statement posted on the newspaper's website on Tuesday.
Muratov shared the 2021 Nobel Prize with Filipino-American journalist Maria Ressa for what the judges described as his "efforts to safeguard freedom of expression."
Who are Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, the journalists who won the Nobel Peace Prize?
Proceeds from the sale of the Nobel medal will go to the NGO The Foundation of Assistance to the Ukrainian Refugees, which supports refugees from Ukraine.
In the statement, Muratov highlighted the need for a ceasefire, the exchange of prisoners and the provision of humanitarian corridors.
More than 3.5 million refugees have fled Ukraine, according to the latest update from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov poses during the award ceremony on December 10, 2021 in Oslo.
Muratov helped found Novaya Gazeta in 1993 and has been its main editor since 1995. The Nobel Committee said the newspaper had been highly critical of the Russian government since its inception, including reporting on corruption and the activities of the Russian military. country.
The Russian authorities have tightened their control over the country's independent media following the invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, lawmakers criminalized the dissemination of "false" information that discredits the Russian Armed Forces or calls for sanctions against the country.
The repression has forced some media outlets to close their doors and their journalists to leave the country.
In early March, Novaya Gazeta said it had removed articles about the war in Ukraine from its website due to government censorship.
-- Anna Cooban contributed to this report.
Nobel Peace Prize Refugees
