 In May 2012 105 deputies of the State Duma, drawn from all the main parties, supported a motion about the murder of Hadjimurad Kamalov drawn up by Boris Reznik of United Russia. It called on the Investigative Committee to display greater vigour in its pursuit of those behind the December 2011 assassination of the prominent Dagestani journalist and public figure. Certain killings of journalists in the 1990s, above all that of Dima Kholodov in 1994, stirred considerable popular feeling. Occasionally this led to sustained efforts at investigation, even prosecution, by the authorities. Most such cases, however, have been in Moscow. The overdue but welcome response by Russia’s parliament to the new situation on the country's southern flank is something new. At long last the reaction at the national level to ongoing murders of journalists in the North Caucasus, above all Dagestan, has not been restricted to an indifferent shrug of the shoulders. It has been clear for some time that the region is special. [Read more] |
Blogs and Statements >