Journalists disappearing in Russia: End of the free press run

In what is being called "the information war," journalists are apparently the enemy. The Russians have decided that one mistake of the unsuccessful 1994-96 campaign to crush Chechnya's independence drive was to allow the press to cover it. Not any more. The reporter, Fred Weir was arrested once arrived in Vladikavkaz, the capital of the mainly Christian Caucasian republic of North Ossetia, because of talking about the Chechen war with off-duty soldiers. Check this for more details!

The unexplained murder of critical journalists, democratic politicians, businessmen and even priests has continued throughout the Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin eras. Zygmunt Dzieciolowski, in Moscow, investigates. There are around 30,000 murders annually in Russia, while most are routine crimes involving alcohol abuse, domestic abuse or everyday violence; with a further 30,000 people disappear without trace every year, making the estimate of the annual number of contract killings a rough one, but the best guess is 500-700. Check out for more stories!

Sources confirm that senior Russian media ministry officials have asked for serious punishments for foreign journalists as they try to adopt positions hostile to the Russian government. In short, they dare to tell the truth to the world. Some facts listed on the page testify for this.

Stephen Brown quotes: In Russia, the best journalists don’t necessarily get recognized with medals, but rather with coffins. The latest murder of Anna Politkovskaya in her apartment in Moscow is a prime example for this sad development. Read on how Russia still curbs the media and journalists who dare to care about the freedom of speech.

Who dares report the truth... disappears. At least this is the common feeling amongst the journalists trying to report from Russia. Babitski is a journalist with the U.S.-funded Radio Liberty. He reported from behind Chechen lines on the bombardment of civilians and on soaring Russian military casualties. Despite the controversy, human rights workers say they have documented cases of torture, rape and summary executions in Chechnya — all committed by Russian soldiers.