16 December 2009, 23:55
This year, three journalists from South Federal District were killed
Yesterday, on December 15, the annual Remembrance Day of the journalists who perished at performance of their professional duties was marked in Moscow. The Union of Journalists of Russia (UJR) instituted this date in memory of the media workers who have taken their violent death during the last 20 years. Today, he list has more than 300 surnames.
In 2009, 10 journalists were added to this mournful list, including Natalia Estemirova ("Novaya Gazeta", "Caucasian Knot"), Anastasia Baburova ("Novaya Gazeta") and Telman Alishayev (journalist of the programme named "Peace to Your House" at the Dagestan TV). The latter was assassinated in 2008, but because the circumstances of his death were not clear, his name was not included in the last year's list of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
The commemoration party held at the Central House of Journalists was opened by Vsevolod Bogdanov, President of the Union of Journalists of Russia (UJR), who announced a minute of silence. The organizers of the event noted the absence of any officials and owners of the media where the perished journalists had worked.
John Crowfoot, author of the report "Biased Justice", told about the online database of perished editors and journalists and called the audience to make amendments and additions into this database. Let us note here that the report "Biased Justice" was used by the UJR as the basis for the developed regional strategy of counteracting violence applied to media workers.
