HRC "Memorial": authorities of Dagestan should stop persecuting journalists and rights defenders

Dagestan becomes a dangerous place for civil activists and journalists, runs the statement of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" made in the context of threats addressed to Magomed Khanmagomedov, a special correspondent of the newspaper "Chernovik", who made his own inquiry into the special operation conducted in Derbent on June 16, 2010.

The HRC "Memorial" received an application of Arthur Mamayev, acting editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Chernovik", expressing his concern about Magomed Khanmagomedov's safety.

Mr Mamayev wrote that his weekly "Chernovik" published, in No. 26 of July 9, 2010, an article "Take nobody alive!", where Magomed Khanmagomedov, the weekly's special correspondent for Southern Dagestan, told about his own investigation into the special operation on June 16 in the area of the tunnel in Derbent.

On the following day after the publication, Khanmagomedov received a call from Basir Akhmedov, head of the criminal investigation of the Derbent GOVD (City Interior Division), who spoke brutally and demanded explanations: "What are you doing? Are you an inspector? Who are you to put forward versions?" Then Akhmedov promised to surely meet him to talk eye-to-eye.

On that very day, as Khanmagomedov has earlier told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, soon after Akhmedov's call, a woman - Sevil Navruzova - called the journalist: "She said that young people leave for forests because of such people like me."

She kept calling several times, until Khanmagomedov switched off his phone.

Soon after that the journalist received an SMS message from some other phone running: "Your article is a purposeful policy for pitting Dagestanians with each other. Probably they pay a lot for pitting. Leave along those alive and dead! You are not a judge to define the guilt without…"

Beatings of lawyers, threats to human rights activists and journalists acquire a systemic character in Dagestan, the HRC "Memorial" marks in its statement, which has arrived to the "Caucasian Knot" office. The HRC called the prosecutor's office and the authorities of Dagestan to strictly stop any illegal actions against journalists and human rights defenders.