Russia’s Media Blackout on Estemirova Murder

chechen_mourning072009.jpgVilhelm Konnander at Global Voices has some translations of LiveJournal users, observing the relative media blackout on the murder of Chechen human rights activist Natalia Estemirova.

Whereas Medvedev’s statement on the murder, may have averted international repercussions, reactions in Russian media were sparse, and LJ user tupikin accounts for [RUS] his own feelings and others’ neglect to cover the issue:

Almost the entire day was spent in a realm of black colour. At first, the press conference about yesterday’s kidnapping and murder of Grozny Human Rights defender Natalya Estemirova (judging from comments on my post – a single one – one might think that it is only of interest for anti-Kremlin websites, whereas none of my best friends showed any interest whatsoever). Tell me, honestly, do you think that Human Rights’ defenders are crazy? Or rather, predestined to die? OK, the press conference gathered 60 journalists, including ten TV-cameras. When Ludmila Alexeyeva, chairman of the Moscow Helsinki group, asked national [i.e. Russian] journalists to raise their hands, it turned out to be no more than 15 people. The news, which has circled world media, is received, here in our country, with amazing stoicism, as if that simply is the way it has to be. Really, not 60, but 160 journalists should have come… Well, that is not some other country, but it is all ours. [–] and then Ludmila Alexeyeva added that two people were guilty – Ramzan Kadyrov and Vladimir Putin. [–] I don’t know whether the tacit readers of my LiveJournal understand, that this is a sensation of all-Russian proportions [–] that two of the most high-ranking state officials in Russia were named as accomplices to a political murder in front of TV-cameras and tens of journalists. The ground did not shake, only silence followed. As I wrote these words on the keyboard of my old notebook, it was as if the finger-touches forming letters were like the strikes from the Tsar Bell