Journalist killed in her apartment
New York, October 21, 2004—Well-known Belarusian journalist Veronika Cherkasova was killed in her apartment in the capital, Minsk, yesterday. Her body, which had multiple stab wounds, was found last night, according to local and international reports. Cherkasova, 44, had reported for the Minsk-based opposition newspaper Solidarnost since May 2003. Previously, she worked for the independent…
Togo: Promises and the Press
In Togo, journalists are skeptical but see opportunity in the regime’s bid to shed sanctions. By Adam Posluns with reporting by Alexis Arieff With 37 years in power, Togolese President Gnassingbé Eyadéma is Africa’s longest-serving head of state. Even after the country introduced multiparty elections more than a decade ago, Eyadéma and his ruling party,…
Killers go free 10 years after Moscow journalist’s murder
New York, October 15, 2004—Ten years after a reporter for the Moscow-based independent newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets was murdered when a booby-trapped briefcase exploded, no one has been brought to justice in the slaying and the statute of limitations is about to expire. The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed outrage today that such a heinous crime…
Court acquits suspect in Togliatti editor’s murder
New York, October 12, 2004—A Russian district court judge yesterday acquitted a factory welder in the October 2003 murder of Tolyattinskoye Obozreniye Editor Aleksei Sidorov. The Committee to Protect Journalists, which questioned whether the prosecution was aimed at the true killer, called today for a new and more credible investigation.
CPJ concerned about criminal inquiry against a North Ossetian journalist
New York, October 8, 2004—Authorities in the southern Russian republic of North Ossetia are pursuing a criminal investigation against Yuri Bagrov, a reporter covering the North Caucasus for The Associated Press. The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned the government probe may be motivated by Bagrov’s reporting on politically sensitive issues, including the war in…
Backing off earlier statements, Moscow police deny progress in Klebnikov case
New York, October 4, 2004—Moscow police have backed away from statements made by their chief last week in which he said two Chechen men were considered suspects in the murder of Paul Klebnikov, editor of Forbes Russia, according to local press reports. Police Chief Vladimir Pronin was widely quoted in local and international news reports…