More protection needed for Russian journos: rights groups
ABC - February 20, 2009, 5:25 pm
The acquittal of three men over the murder of a prominent Russian journalist in Moscow has sparked anger among her supporters.
Anna Politkovskaya was shot dead outside her home in Moscow in 2006.
Human rights groups say the case was mishandled and they have called for greater protection for journalists in Russia .
After months of detention, the three men accused of being involved in Ms Politkovskaya's murder were delighted to head out of the Moscow courtroom and into the cold, fresh air as soon as they heard the jury return 'not guilty' verdicts because of insufficient evidence.
Many have felt bitter disappointment about the way the investigation into the murder of ms Politkovskaya has been handled.
Defence lawyers, including Valery Chernikov may have been delighted with the verdicts in this trial, but they had nothing kind to say about the case that put their clients in court.
"It's been such a fiasco, that the country, the government and the prosecutor-general can't let it go without giving it their attention."
Another defence lawyer, Murad Musaev, said there would be no medals for the investigators.
"He's going to be asked to find the real criminals, because the nation is beginning to ask questions."
In fact, many around the world have been asking questions about the Politkovskaya case, ever since the acclaimed author and journalist was shot dead outside her Moscow apartment in October 2006.
She had been renowned for her reporting on human rights abuses in conflict-torn Chechnya and for her criticism of the Putin presidency and some of its policies. Her journalism had won her praise and produced high-powered enemies.
None of the three at the centre of this trial had been accused of being Ms Politkovskaya's killer. Investigators say a brother of two of the former defendants was the gunman, but he has yet to be found.
Even the mastermind of the murder has not been revealed.
Outside the court, the Politkovskaya family's lawyer, Karina Moskalenko slammed the investigation as inefficient and demanded investigators do more to solve this case.
"We want the real murderer and we will achieve that."
The slain journalist's children and former colleagues have told a media conference they were not surprised by the verdict, but are angry about the investigation and trial.
Sergey Sokolov is chief editor of Novaya Gazeta, where Ms Politkovskaya worked.
'This is a verdict against the entire legal system that has been ineffective from beginning to end' he said.
Elsa Vidal, a member of the press freedom group Reporters Without Borders, says the Politkovskaya murder is the highest-profile case in a country where being a journalist can be highly dangerous.
The organisation says in the past nine years, 21 journalists have been killed in Russia because of their job.
"They were expecting independent and impartial justice and that has not been the case so it is casting a very bad shadow on Russian justice," she said.
"The question is the question of impunity.
"So we think there is a need for the law to effectively protect journalists but more over there is a real need for the authorities to get on this case and to give clear instruction to the judges and to the police men in charge of investigations concerning journalists."
