OSCE parliamentary body president condemns murder of Russian investigative journalist

COPENHAGEN, 10 October 2006 - The Secretary General of the OSCE's Parliamentary Assembly, Spencer Oliver, attended the funeral of slain Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya today while the Assembly's president, Goran Lennmarker condemned her murder as a "tragedy that silenced bravery and strength."

"I utterly condemn this brutal murder. As one of Russia's most distinguished investigative journalists, she was a strong force for democracy. Her loss is felt deeply by the Parliamentary Assembly," Mr. Lennmarker said.

Mr. Oliver described today's ceremony as a "moving testimony to her courageous life".

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly awarded Ms. Politkovskaya, an investigative journalist with the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, the OSCE Prize for Journalism and Democracy in February 2003.

As Freimut Duve, then OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, presented the Prize in 2003, he noted that the award was started "not only as a symbol, but as an alarm clock for freedom of the media, which is one of the fundamental principles of a democracy".

Ms. Politkovskaya was the eighth recipient of the OSCE Prize for Journalism and Democracy, first awarded in 1996. In her acceptance speech, she spoke about her personal experiences as a reporter in Chechnya, and drew attention to human rights abuses in the region.

"I'm a journalist," she said. "I'm neither a politician nor a diplomat. And so I'm not polite - I say what I think. And what I think about is what I see with my own eyes. My job is simple: to look around and to write what I see."