Supreme Court overturns acquittal in Klebnikov murder
New York, November 9, 2006 — The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the decision today by Russia’s Supreme Court to overturn the acquittal of two suspects in the assassination of Forbes Russia editor Paul Klebnikov and order a retrial. The ruling comes six months after a jury at Moscow City Court acquitted Kazbek Dukuzov and…
Government controls on news compromise vote in Tajikistan
New York, November 3, 2006—Repression of opposition and independent news media has compromised the fairness of Monday’s presidential election, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. President Imomali Rakhmonov seeks a third, seven-year term in the balloting. “We’re greatly concerned that Tajik authorities have deprived citizens of independent and diverse sources of news at a…
Who will be Russia’s conscience?
Anna Politkovskaya was one of Russia’s greatest investigative reporters and one of the world’s leading experts on the conflict in Chechnya. At the time of her death, she was preparing to publish a story alleging that Chechnya’s Kremlin-backed prime minister, Ramzan Kadyrov, had been involved in torture.
European court rejects Kholodov case
New York, October 17, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists is disappointed that the legal battle to win justice in the case of murdered Russian journalist Dmitry Kholodov has come to an end with the decision of the European Court of Human Rights not to pursue the case. Kholodov was killed 12 years ago today. The…
CPJ fears silencing of critical Web site on Chechnya
New York, October 13, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the closure today of a Russian nongovernmental organization which publishes an online newspaper regarded as one of the few reliable sources of news on Chechnya. The closure comes just six days after the murder in Moscow of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya, a fierce critic of…
See: CPJ calls on Putin to take responsibility for Politkovskaya murder probe
SEE: New York, October 10, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s belated public condemnation today of journalist Anna Politkovskaya’s murder but called on him to express unambiguous support for the criminal investigation.
CPJ condemns slaying of Russian reporter Anna Politkovskaya
New York, October 7, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns today’s murder of Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist renowned for her critical coverage of the Chechen conflict. Politkovskaya was found shot to death in the elevator of her apartment building in Moscow, The Associated Press reported.
Uzbek reporter sentenced to six years in prison despite witness reversal
New York, October 5, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged by the six-year prison sentence given today to independent reporter Ulugbek Khaidarov following a two-day trial in which the prosecution’s lead witness reportedly affirmed the journalist’s innocence. Khaidarov, whose reports in independent foreign publications were critical of government and business officials, was found guilty…
Opposition journalist sentenced to 3 years jail
New York, October 4, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the three-year prison sentence given today to a critical journalist in Azerbaijan on what local press freedom activists called trumped up drug charges. Sakit Zakhidov, a prominent reporter and satirist for the daily opposition newspaper Azadlyg, was convicted of drug use by a court in…