Leader of the YABLOKO party Sergei Mitrokhin and members
of YABLOKO’s Political Committee Grigory Yavlinsky and Mikhail
Amosov, as well as leaders and activists of the Moscow YABLOKO
laid flowers to the place of murder of lawyer Stanislav Markelov
and journalist Anastasiya Baburova in the centre of Moscow
at Prechistenka street.
Later today (at 8 p.m.) Sergei Mitrokhin will participate
in the memorial rally organised by the Committee of January
19. The rally will take place in the Novopushkinsky garden.
Markelov and Baburova were murdered in Moscow in plain daylight
on January 19, 2009, shot in the head by a gunman. According
to the investigators, the crime was performed by neonazies.
Photo: Grigory Yavlinsky
The murders were brazen and demonstrative. There were versions
as far as motives of this crime are concerned. Markelov as
lawyer handled cases connected with violence in Chechnya,
both against the federal forces who tortured and murdered
Chechen civilians, and the Chechen leadership, who suspected
of kidnapping and murders. He also represented journalist
Mikhail Beketov, who was attacked and severely injured in
autumn 2008 allegedly due to his criticism of the Khimki Mayor.
Photo: Galina Mikhalyova and Sergei Mitrokhin
Stas and Nastya’s comrades in the antifascist movement assumed
that neo-Nazis had been involved, as Stanislav Markelov pressed
the law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation of
the murder of young antifascist Alexander Riukhin (in the
spring of 2006). Due to Markelov’s efforts the authorities
were unable to sweep this case under the rug. Due to his persistence
the police investigators not only came up with a list of suspects,
but also brought the case to court. Half of the people on
the list were proved to be involved in Alexander’s murder
and were arrested and convicted, while the rest were placed
on the federal wanted list.
See also:
Human
Rights
Freedom
of Speech
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