15 July 2014, 11:00
Today is five years after death of Natalia Estemirova
Exactly five years have expired since the kidnapping and death in Chechnya in 2009 of Natalya Estemirova, an employee of the Grozny representative office of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial".
To date, the crime remains unsolved; and no killers of Estemirova have been found. As reported by the website of the Amnesty International, for more than a year no news appeared about the progress of the criminal investigation.
Let us note here that the Russia's General Prosecutor's Office treats Natalya Estemirova's murder case as solved. According to investigators, a certain Alkhazur Bashaev, now on the international wanted list, was involved in the murder. His motive was to take revenge for Natalya's publications about Bashaev recruiting militants and attack on the family of a Moscow businessman, as well as for her discrediting the state authorities of Chechnya.
Estemirova's colleagues associate her murder with her professional activities. On September 10, 2011, human rights activists complained to the European Court of Human Rights about the lack of progress in the investigation. In the same year, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the "Novaya Gazeta" and the HRC "Memorial" presented a report on the results of an independent investigation, which indicated that the investigation was on the wrong track.
