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Alerts - Russia

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Russia

Putin's new mandate starts inauspiciously for media

At least 15 journalists were arrested and assaulted at a protest against the Russian prime minister's installation for a third term.

Russia

Prominent journalist attacked

Shortly after midnight on April 5, 2012, two men attacked Elena Milashina, a journalist with the leading Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, and her friend Ella Asoyan, a program officer at Freedom House. The attack took place near Milashina’s home in the Moscow suburb of Balashikha.

Russia

Apparent arson attempt at activists' office

“Despite the Kremlin’s repeated pledges to ensure normal working conditions for human rights defenders, Russian civil society groups operate in an increasingly hostile environment,” says Human Rights Watch.

Russia

New wave of detentions at peaceful protests

On March 17 and 18, 2012, police detained over 130 peaceful protesters at three separate gatherings in Moscow. Earlier that week, over 10 pro-democracy activists were sentenced to administrative arrest in Nizny Novgorod for having participated in a peaceful protest rally.

Russia

Russian authorities ramp up political prosecutions

Two members of punk feminist group Pussy Riot will remain in pre-trial detention until 24 April, when they face trial on charges of hooliganism and could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison for performing a protest song in Moscow’s Christ the Saviour cathedral.

Russia

Journalists prevented from covering presidential elections, says GDF

Journalists covering the elections reported a variety of disturbing violations and irregularities in the voting, and say that both the police and elections officials were responsible.

Russia

Journalists detained at post-election rally

Pavel Nikulin, Maria Klimova, Andrei Stenin, and Arkady Babchenko were covering an opposition protest when they were rounded up by police.

Russia

Putin must carry out promised reforms, end impunity for journalists' murders

Since the parliamentary elections in December, the authorities have used a range of tactics to harass and discredit their critics, even as they have allowed public protests.

Russia

Human Rights Watch calls for an end to intimidation of activists, media as election nears

In the lead-up to the March 4, 2012 presidential vote, authorities have harassed a major election-monitoring nongovernmental organization, directly and indirectly interfered with the operation of independent news outlets critical of the government, and harassed and threatened civic activists.

Russia

Draft electoral law provision threatens freedom of expression

If passed, the draft law would mean that media outlets would be under constant threat of closure for any of their publications that is labelled as "pre-election agitation".

Russia

TV anchors threatened by outlawed extremist group

In an online screed posted to a radical Islamist website, several individuals threatened to "cut out" the smiles of journalists Aznor Attayev and Arina Zhilyasova for reporting on special law-enforcement operations.

Russia

Ekho Moskvy board shuffled ahead of election

Long-standing directors Aleksandr Makovsky and Evgeny Yasin were forced to leave, raising suspicions that the authorities are trying to hush criticism of Vladimir Putin and the ruling United Russia party.

Russia

French journalist expelled for interviewing opposition members

According to local press reports, authorities interrogated Anne Nivat for four hours on 10 February and informed her that she had violated the status of her business visa by meeting with the opposition. Authorities cancelled her visa and gave her three days to leave the country.

Russia

Journalist detained for questioning after publishing open letter to Putin

Mikhail Lobanov believes he is being pressured to protect one of his attackers in an earlier beating - the son of a regional inspector - from criminal liability.

Russia

Government shuts HIV-prevention group's website

The website by the Andrey Rylkov Foundation advocates health-based drug policies and has been a vocal critic of the country's ban on methadone.

Russia

Authorities "at war" with bloggers in Chelyabinsk region

Blogs of government critics in Chelyabinsk region have been under cyber attack in recent weeks in an apparent bid to stem the spread of negative information on the Internet about authorities' performance.

Russia

Independent newspaper suspends publication in response to pressure

According to the general director of "Moi Gorod-Kostroma", the paper was subjected to various inspections while its staff was repeatedly detained by the police.

Russia / Tajikistan

Tajik opposition journalist stabbed in Moscow

Dodojon Atovulloev is well-known for his critical views towards the Tajik authorities and the serious threats to which he has been subjected have led Germany to give him political refugee status.

Russia

Newspaper comes under pressure after election of Communist Party mayor

The actions against the "Gorodskoi Vestnik" newspaper have included threats, expulsion of journalists from public events and removal of copies of the paper from newsstands.

Russia

Impunity still reigns in beating of Oleg Kashin

One year after the attack, none of Kashin's assailants have been arrested and those who commissioned the crime remain unknown.

Russia

Journalists' house burgled, dog poisoned

Yakov Samokhin and Eleonora Solomennikova believe the incident was a warning for them to stop reporting on environmentally and politically sensitive topics.

Russia

Journalist and human rights activist killed in Dagestan

Hadzhimurad Kamalov, founder of "Chernovik" newspaper, was shot and killed outside the newspaper's offices on Memorial Day, a day dedicated to commemorating the assassination of journalists in the country.

Russia

Respect right to peaceful protest, says Human Rights Watch

Riot police detained more than 300 demonstrators at a major rally in Moscow to protest what they contend are fraudulent parliamentary election results.

Russia

Political debate disrupted by cyber-attacks and arrests

Websites critical of the government were paralysed both prior to and during the elections, while a number of opposition journalists and bloggers were briefly detained in the days preceding the vote.

Russia

Freedom House condemns authorities' harassment of independent election monitor

"The campaign against Golos is yet another reason to raise serious questions about the legitimacy, openness, and competitiveness of Russia's parliamentary election," says Freedom House.

Russia

Voronezh authorities suspend publication of newspaper

"My – Grazhdane" was founded in 2001. The paper publishes materials on the most important socio-political events taking place in Russia.

Russia

Authorities tighten control of all media in run-up to elections

Censorship measures are targeting both traditional media, which are closely scrutinized, criticized and threatened, and the Internet, now recognized as playing a key role in political debate. Russia has 51 million Internet users, more than any other country in Europe.

Russia

Human Rights Watch calls on St. Petersburg legislature to halt consideration of "draconian homophobic bill"

The discriminatory bill is a blatant attack on free expression and a thinly disguised attempt to silence Russia's LGBT community, said Human Rights Watch.

Russia

Rural residents under "information blockade" during elections

Opposition parties in Omsk region say they have been denied equal access to airtime which they say is preventing local residents from accessing information about candidates and denying them their electoral rights.

Russia

Newspaper harassed over critical article

Officials are threatening to sue the newspaper "Moi Gorod - Kostroma" for slander after it published an article criticising the regional security department.

Russia

Journalist beaten and robbed

Sergey Avdeyev was beaten in the presence of police officers for taking pictures of an illegally operating barbeque restaurant in Yekaterinburg's Leninsky district on 22 October.

Russia

Government eager to use Net surveillance software currently in test phase

If the authorities decide, using very vague criteria, that a website has "extremist" content, the site will be given three days to remove it. If it fails to comply, it will be sent two further warnings and then it will be closed down.

Russia

Southern Urals media community concerned over dismissal of editors

Some journalists believe the purpose of the dismissals was to appoint persons loyal to the current administration prior to upcoming state Duma elections.

Russia

Editor attacked in his home over anti-corruption reports

Alexander Singurov believes the attack was aimed at killing him. He links the incident to stories published in his newspaper just two days prior to the attack.

Russia

Retired police official charged in Politkovskaya murder

The Investigative Committee brought charges against Lt. Col. Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov in connection with the journalist's 2006 murder and named a convicted criminal as an organiser of the slaying.

Russia

New suspect detained in Anna Politkovskaya's slaying

The suspect, retired Lt. Col. Dmitry Pavlyuchenkov, is said to have formed a criminal group tasked with killing the journalist.

Russia

Journalist attacked in Anapa

Vyacheslav Martynov's wife believes that the journalist may have been targeted for his critical publications about municipal corruption.

Russia

Human Rights Watch urges authorities to quash prosecution against rights lawyer

The charges against Sapiyat Magomedova appear to be in retribution for her efforts to obtain justice for the police beating she suffered in June 2010, Human Rights Watch said.

Russia

Charges laid against official who attacked, injured reporter

Alexander Koltsov was attacked shortly after publishing a critical article about the collapse of a pedestrian overpass in the district of Naro-Fominsk.

Russia

Armed man pursues journalist in Moscow

CPJ calls for a thorough police investigation into the incident, including the possibility that the threat against Vadim Rechkalov was connected to his work as a journalist.

Russia

Human rights defender acquitted

The slander case stemmed from Oleg Orlov's statement suggesting that Chechnya's leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, was responsible for the murder of the human rights advocate Natalia Estemirova in July 2009.

Russia

Activists targeted on eve of EU Summit

"EU leaders should make it clear they won't tolerate threatening activists for their legitimate human rights work," says Human Rights Watch.

Russia

Human rights defender attacked near residence, injured

The beating by unidentified men on the stairway of his Moscow apartment building was the second recent attack on Hamroev, a longtime human rights defender who works on issues related to Central Asia and Islam with the Memorial Human Rights Center.

Russia

WAN-IFRA welcomes reopening of printing house

The weekly "Krestyanin" won a court hearing to reopen the printing house and printing presses, averting a financial crisis that would have threatened the paper's existence.

Russia

Suspected gunman indicted in Anna Politkovskaya's murder

Rustam Makhmudov, the suspected gunman in the 2006 murder of the investigative journalist, was indicted in Moscow, according to Russian press reports.

Russia

Court suspends private weekly's printing house for 90 days

WAN-IFRA is concerned that the closure is politically motivated and part of a campaign by local officials to silence critical voices in the run-up to elections.

Russia

Dagestan court acquits "Chernovik" journalists

CPJ welcomes the ruling, which acquitted editor Nadira Isayeva and four reporters with the Makhachkala-based independent weekly of long-standing, politicised extremism charges.

Russia

Two sentenced in Baburova murder

The conviction of two defendants in the 2009 double murder of journalist Anastasiya Baburova and human rights lawyer Stanislav Markelov is a landmark victory in the fight against impunity in press killings, CPJ said.

Russia

Journalist beaten after photographing demolished house

Magomed Khanmagomedov reported the attack and threats to police but his assailants have not been detained.

Russia

Two suspects found guilty in Baburova murder

Anastasiya Baburova, a freelance reporter with the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, was shot and killed in Moscow along with human rights lawyer Stanislav Markelov in January 2009.

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