“Natalya Estermirova had a meeting with France vingt quatre at eight on Wednesday morning. She’d agreed to give an interview. Time passed but Estermeiova did not turn up, her phone didn’t answer. Colleagues sounded the alarm after a few hours.”
That was
France 24’s initial report of Estemirova’s disappearance. She was later found murdered in Ingushetia. The human rights worker was the latest political whistle blower killed. We’ve examined global perspectives of the issue to bring you the story.
First we turn to The
Financial Times, who spoke with a human rights activist. He points the fingers at the Chechen and Russian governments.
“When they kill three people in a row in a short space of time who worked on the same subject, then all questions disappear.”
Euronews takes the same approach, talking to a Russian human rights organization leader. She asks why no one has taken Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov to trial.
“Again, why do so many of the personal enemies of President Kadyrov end up dead, not just in Chechnya, but in other places, yet he remains president and there are no legal proceedings against him.”
No one’s found any of the murderers. David Satter of
Forbes thinks it’s because those behind the killings have direct ties to the Russian government.
“Law enforcement in Russia is beholden to the very people in the business and political elite who find independent reporting most objectionable.”
Canada’s
The Real News Network interviewed a freelance journalist who worked with Estemirova just three weeks before her death. He speaks of the larger implications of her death for the citizens of Chechnya.
“Without her I don’t know what lots of people are going to do. And it also sends a huge message to other people in Chechnya who are trying to work in the field of human rights and are trying to open up some of these things that are going on in Chechnya. It’s a big message that if you stick your head out then you can get killed.”
So what do you think? Are the Russian and Chechen governments behind the murders of these political and human rights activists?
Copy the code and paste it to your blog or website:
