Journalist sentenced to five years in prison camp released
New York, August 24, 2005—A court in the central Russian city of Smolensk has released independent journalist Nikolai Goshko who was sentenced in June to five years in a prison camp for criminal defamation. Goshko told CPJ today that he was surprised by the August 19 release order, which came after the prosecution agreed to…
Court upholds two-year prison sentence for journalist
New York, August 17, 2005—A district court in Moscow upheld the conviction of editor and writer Pavel Lyuzakov on Tuesday, sentencing him to two years in a prison colony for illegal possession of a pistol. The journalist and colleagues say the charges against him were politically motivated and filed in retaliation for his criticism of…
CPJ calls on minister to reverse ABC decision
Dear Minister Lavrov: The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the Foreign Ministry’s pattern of using accreditation, visa and other regulations to control and intimidate journalists reporting on the war in Chechnya for foreign media. The Foreign Ministry escalated this campaign against foreign news media by moving this week to bar the U.S. television network ABC from reporting in Russia.
RUSSIA
AUGUST 2, 2005 Posted: August 9, 2005 ABC Andrei Babitsky, ABC HARASSED, LEGAL ACTION The Foreign Ministry announced steps to bar the U.S. television network ABC from reporting in Russia. The ministry said in a statement that ABC reporters had been denied access to government officials and that their accreditations will not be renewed when…
Kremlin moves to bar ABC from reporting in Russia
New York, August 2, 2005—The Kremlin escalated its campaign of intimidation against foreign news media covering the war in Chechnya as authorities began moving today to bar the U.S. television network ABC from reporting in Russia. The Committee to Protect Journalists denounced the decision and called for its reversal.
Foreign Ministry summons U.S. diplomat after ABC report
New York, July 29, 2005—The Russian Foreign Ministry today issued a formal complaint to a U.S. diplomat, a day after the ABC News program “Nightline” aired an interview with Chechen rebel leader Shamil Basayev, according to international news reports. Already this year, Russian authorities have pressured both Britain and Sweden after independent media in those…
CPJ seeks investigation into cameraman’s death at drag-race site
New York, July 14, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called for a thorough and aggressive investigation into the death of Pavel Makeev, 21, a cameraman for Puls television in the southern Russian town of Azov. Makeev’s body was found alongside a road on the outskirts of the Rostov Region town on May 21, shortly…
The Moscow Declaration
e, the relatives and colleagues of journalists murdered in Russia, along with Russian and international press freedom advocates, who convened for a conference in Moscow on July 7, 2005, declare the following: The lack of progress in investigating journalist murders undermines freedom and democracy in Russia, and demonstrates the lawlessness and impunity with which Russian…