Statement of Moscow bureau for human rights 

A year ago, on January 19, 2009 in the center of Moscow in broad daylight the human rights activist Stanislav Markelov and the journalist Anastasia Baburova were killed. The criminal fired point-blank, before the eyes of passers-by but escaped safely. This mean murder caused broad public response not only in Russia but also abroad. Meetings, actions of protest and solidarity with the deceased took place in many countries of the world. 

Stanislav was an active participant of anti-fascist movement, rendered the lawyer’s assistance to its representatives, helped the families the members of which suffered from the neo-Nazis’ hands. He was involved into the cases connected with military crimes in Chechnya, human rights and environmental subjects. He was the lawyer of the family of Elza Kungayeva – colonel Budanov was accused of her murder. He represented the interests of the victims in the criminal case on mass militia pogrom in Blagoveshchensk as well as of the victims within the case on capture of hostages in theatre center at Dubrovka. He was the lawyer of the editor-in-chief of “Khimki Pravda” Mikhail Beketov who was beaten cruelly and of the head of Vladimir committee of soldiers’ mothers Lyudmila Yarilina. He defended the representatives of independent mass media, was responsible for all the legal matters of “Novaya gazeta”, involved into big social-labor conflicts and the cases in the field of environmental law. He undertook to any socially significant, so-called resonant cases. He investigated the case on the murder of Anna Politkovskaya. He defended the activists of the movement “Antifa”. Neo-Nazis hated him and threatened him more than once. Two children under age became orphans. The Council of the lawyers’ associations and juridical societies of Europe uniting more than 700 thousand lawyers of Europe awarded Sergey Markelov its prize of 2009 posthumously. 

Anastasia Baburova, the journalist of “Novaya gazeta”, was 25 years old. Being a 5th-year student of faculty of journalism of Moscow state university, she was an activist of environmental movement. Nastya tried to detain Markelov’s killer but he wounded her mortally, and she died a little later in the hospital. 

The head of Investigatory committee under the Office of general public prosecutor Alexander Bastrykin stated after this crime that the murder of Stanislav Markelov was connected with his participation in legal proceedings against nationalists and neo-Nazis. And indeed, members of radical nationalistic group “Russian image” Nikita Tikhonov and Yevgenia Khasis were arrested soon and accused of this double murder. Tikhonov, according to his lawyer, took upon himself the responsibility and gave the evidence of confession. But in December 2009 he repudiated his evidence and stated he gave it under pressure from the investigator. Neo-Nazi version of the crime however remains principal, and there are serious reasons for this. 

Human rights activists of Moscow initiated conduction of procession along the Boulevard circle and of meeting in memory of Markelov and Baburova on January 19, 2010. Theses actions were directed against neo-Nazi terror, racism and xenophobia. The “Committee of January 19” calls upon “depriving the Nazis and racists of obvious and concealed support on the part of officials, dismissing representatives of the ultra-right from official politics, preventing use of right-radical groups against civil and political activists”. 

The Moscow authorities, alleging the breach of the procedure of the application submission, first rejected conduction of any anti-fascist activities on this day but then agreed to conduction of two pickets (numbering about 400 persons each) – at the beginning of Petrovsky boulevard and near the monument to Griboyedov. The human rights activists stated however that the procession would take place even if the authorities prohibit it. Many representatives of intellectuals are going to take part in it, in particular the author of anti-Nazi film “Russia 88” film-maker Pavel Bardin. 

Moscow bureau for human rights expresses its solidarity with organizers of anti-fascist action on January 19 and demands the soonest investigation of the murder of S. Markelov and A. Baburova from the law-enforcers and system actions from the authorities aimed at opposition to neo-Nazi threat: radical groups and organizations, ideologists of hatred. Priorities of observing human rights, reform of judicial system and law-enforcement system, democratic election, support of culture, efficient reforms in the sphere of economics and social sphere, indifference of public organizations. What should be done in our country may be listed further and further. Only these constituents of legal, democratic state are capable to become a counter-balance to the expanding brown pest.