Prize for Journalism and Democracy 2000 awarded to Russian reporter Andrei Babitsky

COPENHAGEN, 28 April 2000 - The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has awarded the 2000 OSCE Prize for Journalism and Democracy to the Russian reporter Andrei Babitsky. The Prize - consisting of $20.000 - is awarded annually by the Assembly to Journalists who, through their work have promoted OSCE principles on human rights, democracy and unimpeded flow of information. In recent years Andrei Babitsky, reporter for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, has reported on the conflict in Chechnya with complete disregard for his personal safety, and has been one of the very few critical voices commenting on the situation and recent developments in the region. The Prize will be presented to Andrei Babitsky during the Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on 6 July 2000 in Bucharest.

During the first Chechen war (1994-96) Babitsky was the RFE/RL special correspondent reporting directly from the area, and from 1996-99 worked in Moscow and the north Caucasus. Babitsky became the special RFE/RL correspondent reporting from Grozny in November 1999, and was the only non-Chechen reporter who stayed in the devastated Chechen capital of Grozny.

In January 2000 Babitsky was reported missing and his fate remained uncertain for a considerable time. During that period the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Mr. Freimut Duve, made a number of interventions with the Russian Government on his behalf. Babitsky?s reporting on the conflict in Chechnya has been widely recognized for its objectivity and fairness.

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly established the Prize for Journalism and Democracy in 1996, at the initiative of Mr. Freimut Duve, former member of the German Bundestag and now OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. The purpose of the Prize is to promote the principles of free journalism as laid down in the OSCE Budapest Declaration in 1994.

The Prize has previously been awarded to Mr. Adam Michnik in 1996, ?Reporters sans frontières? in 1997, Mr. Timothy Garton Ash in 1998 and Ms. Christiane Amanpour in 1999.

The Annual Prize for Journalism and Democracy has been made possible by the dedicated and generous assistance of the following donors: Bertelsmann AG, Germany; Bonnier Group, Sweden; Den Berlingske Fond, Denmark; the George and Thelma Paraskevaides Foundation, Cyprus; Southam Inc., Canada and Shipsted ASA, Norway.

For further information please contact: Mr. Jan Jooren, Press Counsellor of the OSCE PA, e-mail press.counsellor@oscepa.dk, tel. +45 33 37 80 36, fax. +45 33 37 80 30