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2000
His Excellency Vladimir Putin
President of the Russian Federation
Moscow
Russia
Fax: / 206 6277
Your Excellency,
We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and the World Editors Forum, which represent more than 17,000 publications in 93 countries, to express our outrage at the murder of journalist Igor Domnekov.
According to reports, Mr Domnekov, a journalist with the twice-weekly Moscow newspaper Novaia Gazeta, died on 16 July from injuries sustained during an attack on 12 May. Mr Domnekov suffered serious head injuries during an assault outside his apartment building in which he was repeatedly struck with a hammer by unknown individuals. He never regained consciousness.
Dmitry Muratov, editor-in-chief of Novaia Gazeta, believes Mr Domnekov’s attackers might have mistaken him for Oleg Sultanov, a colleague and neighbour who was investigating corruption cases within mineral corporations. One month before the attack, Mr Sultanov allegedly received a letter threatening that he would be hit "on the head with a heavy object".
Novaia Gazeta has often published investigative stories on corruption, implicating individuals close to the government and the security services. The newspaper has also been critical of the actions of Russian forces in Chechnya.
We are sure you will agree that journalists must be able to carry out their professional duties without fear of attack and intimidation. Such incidents foster a climate of fear that inhibits journalistic investigation and can promote self-censorship.
We respectfully urge you to ensure that a thorough investigation into the murder of Mr Domnekov is carried out and that those responsible are swiftly brought to justice. We urge you to do everything in your power to create an environment in which journalists are able to carry out their profession free from violence.
We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.
Yours sincerely,
Roger Parkinson
President
World Association of Newspapers
Ruth de Aquino
President
World Editors Forum
cc: Mr Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations
Mrs Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Mr Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General, UNESCO21 July 2000
