ECtHR communicates Oleg Orlov's complaint on case of Natalia Estemirova

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has started the procedure of communication on the complaint filed by Oleg Orlov, a member of the board of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", who was subjected to criminal prosecution for expressing an opinion about the people responsible for the death of Natalia Estemirova.

According to investigators, Alkhazur Bashaev, put on the international wanted list, was involved in the murder, and the crime was motivated by the revenge for the human rights defender's article on the Bashaev's recruitment of militants, the attack on family members of a Moscow businessman, and the defamation of the Chechen authorities.

Oleg Orlov believes that he fell victim to violation under Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights.

"Natalia was a public figure, and I pointed out that the murder resulted from the actions of the official Ramzan Kadyrov," Oleg Orlov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. The human rights defender has noted that his statements were "of great public importance."

"I was twice brought to justice for those statements. At first, in a civil case, I was obliged to pay Kadyrov a large amount of money. And almost simultaneously, criminal proceedings were instituted against me, but the court finally found me not guilty," said Oleg Orlov.

It should be noted that colleagues of Natalia Estemirova associate her murder with her professional activities. On September 10, 2011, human rights defenders filed a complaint to the ECtHR about violation of the European Convention on Human Rights committed in the course of the investigation into the case.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.