Ten years after the assassination of Anna Politkovskaya

Ten years after the assassination of Anna Politkovskaya in Moscow (October 7, 2006), the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) would like to draw attention to the fact that there are still ongoing human rights violations in Chechnya today. “We are honoring the legacy of the great journalist and human rights defender, who was shot dead in Moscow on October 7, 2006 – and we are monitoring the situation in Chechnya closely,” emphasized STP-representative Sarah Reinke in Berlin. “However, since her death, it has become increasingly difficult to send reports from Chechnya. Free and independent critical reporting is suppressed, journalists have to fear for their lives. The victims are those for whom these courageous, committed people try to make a difference: the victims of war, violence, and arbitrariness – but also the disabled, the children, the socially weak."

Journalist Elena Milashhina is being persecuted as well – because of her research into the situation in Chechnya. A few days ago, she reported that dozens of young men had disappeared during the summer. “The Chechen government leader Ramzan Kadyrov has built a wall of silence around the republic in the North Caucasus,” criticized Reinke. “Behind this wall, he is in power – based on corruption, spreading fear and terror, relying on denunciation, arrests, and torture. He is supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin.”

Thousands of Chechens have already tried to escape the despotism. Almost 3,000 are currently in Belarus, trying to reach the EU via Poland. In Germany, the STP is in contact with many refugees and eyewitnesses who are reporting about arbitrary arrests and torture, about permanent threats, and about total control in all areas of life. They are also afraid of being sent to fight in Syria or the Eastern Caucasus against their will. “Many of the refugees are suffering from severe trauma after 20 years of war. Anna Politkovskaya is still missed. She was a critical advocate of the Chechen civilians, and she was heard internationally,” said Reinke.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 20 other journalists have been murdered since Politkovskaya was assassinated, and 63 have become victims of violent attacks, as reported by Freedom House.

Header photo: John Martens/Wikimedia Commons