That’s what Oleg Orlov, the Head of the Russian Human Right’s group Memorial said about the murder of Natalia Estemirova, adding:
"A terror campaign is being conducted in Russia — terror against people who dare say things that are uncomfortable and unpleasant for the authorities, who talk about the crimes of those in power."
Public reaction to her death has even forced President Medevdev onto the record. “I am sure the person who committed it will be punished," he said.
But perhaps Taus Dzhankhotova, a woman whom Estemirova had helped before her death, said it best: "They kill only the good people here. If she was bad, they wouldn't have touched her."
And speaking of bad people, Checehen strong-man Ramzan Kadyrov is taking full advantage of Estemirova’s death. While Kadyrov is widely believed to be involved with the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, his government will launch two investigations into Estemirova’s slaying, “one official and one unofficial, following Chechen traditions.”
Just like OJ Simpson, we’re confident that Kadyrov will find the real killers. We’re even more confident they will happen to live in Ingushetia, and offer Kadyrov an excellent excuse to extend his control over the neighboring republic.
2 comments:
Yet another reminder of the blatant disregard by dictatorships of world perception!! This assassination of Ms Estemirova's is yet another chilling reminder of the perils faced by some journalists and Human Rights activists working in conflict zones around the world. By bringing hard hitting facts to the public arena they irrefutably place themselves in the sniper scope of their enemies. Tragically, this despicable crime against both Human Rights and Press Freedom is becoming an increasingly all too common occurrence across the globe. Nevertheless, many journalists remain undaunted in the face of such adversity and continue to run this gauntlet of reprisal in the pursuit of bringing crimes perpetrated against innocents to world attention.
The perpetrators of this grotesque act of murder against the world of human rights must be brought to justice. By allowing these murders to go unpunished is setting a dangerous precedent for other dictatorships to follow!
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