Stanislav Markelov
Encyclopedia
Stanislav Yuryevich Markelov was a human rights
lawyer and journalist who wrote investigative articles on Chechnya
. Markelov had been the attorney for the family of Elza Kungaeva
, a young Chechen woman killed by Russian colonel Yuri Budanov
, who was released from prison in mid-January, 15 months before his original sentence was to end. Markelov was murdered on 19 January 2009 in Moscow.
who was gunned down in Moscow in 2006, Mikhail Beketov, the editor of a pro-opposition newspaper who was severely beaten in November 2008 and many Chechen civilians who were tortured. He also defended people who were victims of the Moscow theater hostage crisis
.
; he was 34. Anastasia Baburova
, a journalist for Novaya Gazeta
who tried to come to Markelov's assistance, was also shot and killed in the attack.
reported that Markelov planned to appeal the early release of Budanov. Budanov, sentenced to ten years in prison, was released early because he had "repented". When reached for a comment, Budanov denounced the killings as a provocation aimed at fueling animosity between the Russians and the Chechens and offered condolences to the families of the deceased.
According to Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer
, the details of the murder indicate involvement of Russian state security services. He stated:
Viktor Yushchenko
sent a telegram to the parents of Anastasia Baburova on 23 January 2009. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev offered his condolences six days later.
indicate that most people distrust the authorities and think that they cannot investigate the murder, and the crimes will not be solved. The distrust stimulated the wide discussion of the murder and protests.
is a fascist country" and "Markelov will live forever". More than 2,000 people took to the streets of Grozny
.
Human Rights Watch
and Amnesty International
requested an impartial investigation
Other groups hailed Markelov's killing in Internet
chatter, but it is unclear whether they were behind it. A hate crime
s expert Galina Kozhevnikova said in February 2009 she received an e-mail
ed threat warning her to "get ready" to join Markelov.
FSB director Alexander Bortnikov
reported to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that the radical group in question committed a murder on ethnic grounds in September 2009 and was preparing another one "that could become a resonant murder".
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
lawyer and journalist who wrote investigative articles on Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
. Markelov had been the attorney for the family of Elza Kungaeva
Elza Kungaeva
Elza Kungayeva was an 18-year-old Chechen woman abducted, beaten, and murdered by a Russian Army Colonel during the Second Chechen War....
, a young Chechen woman killed by Russian colonel Yuri Budanov
Yuri Budanov
Yuri Dmitrievich Budanov was the Russian military officer convicted by a Russian court of kidnapping and murder in Chechnya.Budanov was highly controversial in Russia: despite the conviction, Budanov enjoyed widespread support of Russian households, as polled by public opinion. At the same time,...
, who was released from prison in mid-January, 15 months before his original sentence was to end. Markelov was murdered on 19 January 2009 in Moscow.
Career
Markelov was a president of the Russian Rule of Law Institute. He represented Anna PolitkovskayaAnna Politkovskaya
Anna Stepanovna Politkovskaya was a Russian journalist, author, and human rights activist known for her opposition to the Chechen conflict and then-President of Russia Vladimir Putin...
who was gunned down in Moscow in 2006, Mikhail Beketov, the editor of a pro-opposition newspaper who was severely beaten in November 2008 and many Chechen civilians who were tortured. He also defended people who were victims of the Moscow theater hostage crisis
Moscow theater hostage crisis
The Moscow theater hostage crisis, also known as the 2002 Nord-Ost siege, was the seizure of the crowded Dubrovka Theater on 23 October 2002 by some 40 to 50 armed Chechens who claimed allegiance to the Islamist militant separatist movement in Chechnya. They took 850 hostages and demanded the...
.
Murder
Markelov was shot to death on 19 January 2009 while leaving a news conference in Moscow less than half a mile from the KremlinKremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...
; he was 34. Anastasia Baburova
Anastasia Baburova
Anastasia Eduardivna Baburova was a journalist for Novaya Gazeta and a student of journalism at Moscow State University. She was born in Sevastopol, Ukraine.A member of Autonomous Action, she investigated activities of neo-Nazi groups...
, a journalist for Novaya Gazeta
Novaya Gazeta
Novaya Gazeta is a Russian newspaper well known in the country for its critical and investigative coverage of Russian political and social affairs....
who tried to come to Markelov's assistance, was also shot and killed in the attack.
Comments
The BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
reported that Markelov planned to appeal the early release of Budanov. Budanov, sentenced to ten years in prison, was released early because he had "repented". When reached for a comment, Budanov denounced the killings as a provocation aimed at fueling animosity between the Russians and the Chechens and offered condolences to the families of the deceased.
According to Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer
Pavel Felgenhauer
Pavel E. Felgenhauer is a Russian journalist. He is known for his publications critical of Russia's political and military elite.-Biography:...
, the details of the murder indicate involvement of Russian state security services. He stated:
Condolences
President of UkrainePresident of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko is a former President of Ukraine. He took office on January 23, 2005, following a period of popular unrest known as the Orange Revolution...
sent a telegram to the parents of Anastasia Baburova on 23 January 2009. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev offered his condolences six days later.
Distrust
Investigations by the radio station Echo of MoscowEcho of Moscow
Echo of Moscow is a Russian radio station based in Moscow, broadcasting in many Russian cities, in some of the former-Soviet republics , and via the Internet, which some observers describe as "the last bastion of free media in Russia"...
indicate that most people distrust the authorities and think that they cannot investigate the murder, and the crimes will not be solved. The distrust stimulated the wide discussion of the murder and protests.
Reactions
Close to 300 young people protested in Moscow with slogans: "United RussiaUnited Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
is a fascist country" and "Markelov will live forever". More than 2,000 people took to the streets of Grozny
Grozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
.
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
and Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
requested an impartial investigation
Other groups hailed Markelov's killing in Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
chatter, but it is unclear whether they were behind it. A hate crime
Hate crime
In crime and law, hate crimes occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group, usually defined by racial group, religion, sexual orientation, disability, class, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, social status or...
s expert Galina Kozhevnikova said in February 2009 she received an e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
ed threat warning her to "get ready" to join Markelov.
Investigation
In November 2009 Russian authorities declared the end of the criminal investigation. The murder suspects are 29-years-old Nikita Tikhonov and his girlfriend, 24-years-old Eugenia Khasis, members of a radical neo-nazi nationalistic group. According to investigators, Tikhonov was the one who committed the murder, while Khasis reported to him movements of Markelov and Baburova right before the assault. The motive of the murder was avenge for Markelov's work as a lawyer in interests of anti-fascist activists. The murder suspects were arrested and one of them was reported to confess.FSB director Alexander Bortnikov
Alexander Bortnikov
Alexander Vasilyevich Bortnikov is a Russian official. He is Director of the FSB since May 12, 2008.-Career:In 1975–2004 he worked in KGB and its successors in Leningrad/Saint Petersburg. In June 2003 – March 2004 he was the Chief of the St...
reported to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that the radical group in question committed a murder on ethnic grounds in September 2009 and was preparing another one "that could become a resonant murder".
His articles
External links
- Lawyer and human rights activist Stanislav Markelov murdered in Moscow WSWS
- "Human Rights Lawyer, Journalist Killed in Moscow", Associated Press via Yahoo News (January 19, 2009)
- "Chechen Rights Lawyer and Journalist Shot in Moscow", The International Herald Tribune (January 19, 2009)
- "Leading Russian Rights Lawyer Shot in Moscow", The New York Times (January 20, 2009)
- Markelov's website (Russian)