11 Feb 2010 | Index Index, minipost, Uncategorized
Moscow gay pride parade organisers have complained to the European Court of Human Rights about the ban on the 2009 parade. Moscow’s Mayor Luzhkow has previously labelled the parade “satanic” and the case follows a number of unsuccessful appeals against the bans in the Russian court system. Moscow Pride are seeking €200,000 in damages from the Russian Federation. The Strasbourg court has given Russian authorities ten days to lay out their position on the ban.
26 Jan 2010 | Magazine
Impunity is an urgent issue facing press freedom campaigners. Joel Simon of the Committee to Protect Journalists outlines a roadmap for action
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8 Dec 2009 | Digital Freedom, Index Index, minipost, News
Claims of internet censorship have spread amongst the Russian blogosphere after the wireless internet service provider, Yota, admitted blocking access to certain websites. Denis Sverdlov, chief executive of WiMax operator Skartel, which runs the Yota brand, acknowledged that Yota blocks access to sites that are classified as extremist by the Justice Ministry. “This strongly smells of political censorship,” said Denis Bilunov, a senior member of Kasparov’s Other Russia movement. He said the most likely explanation was Russian Technologies’ involvement in the company. Read more here
1 Dec 2009 | Index Index, minipost, News
Friends and colleagues have called for an investigation into the death of a Russian TV journalist, Olga Kotovskaya who plunged from the 14th storey of a building one day after winning a major legal case. She was a prominent journalist on Kaskad regional TV channel which broadcasts in the western enclave of Kaliningrad. The channel had a reputation for objective news reporting, live broadcasts, and studio guests who were sometimes critical of regional leaders. The death was originally considered to be suicide however Solomon Ginzburg a deputy in Kaliningrad’s regional parliament told the Guardian: “I have no doubt at all that this was a political killing.” Read more here
