15:03, 15 July 2017

Natalia Estemirova's murderers remain unpunished for eight years already

Picketer with a poster in Moscow on the seventh anniversary of Natalia Estemirova's murder. July 15, 2016. Photo by Karina Gadzhieva for "Caucasian Knot"

On the eighth anniversary of the human rights defender Natalia Estemirova's murder, the US Department of State has called on the Russian authorities to punish the persons guilty for the above crime and put an end to the long-standing climate of impunity for extrajudicial executions.

On July 15, 2009, Natalia Estemirova, a staff member of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" in Chechnya, was kidnapped in Grozny, taken to Ingushetia, and killed.

The US Department of State notes that eight years after the murder, the killers and the persons who ordered the crime have not yet been brought to justice.

According to the General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation, Alkhazur Bashaev, put on the international wanted list, was involved in the murder. The motive for the crime was revenge for the human rights defender's publications and the discredit of the Chechen authorities. Colleagues of Natalia Estemirova believe that the investigation went the wrong way and falsified evidence.

"The United States once again calls for an end to the long-standing climate of impunity for extrajudicial killings – including the murder of journalists – in the North Caucasus and elsewhere in Russia," announced Heather Nauert, the spokesperson for the United States Department of State.

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