Media Freedom Coalition demands justice 20 years after Anna Politkovskaya’s assassination

Crime Diary, International

LAGOS, Nigeria (NPA) — The Media Freedom Coalition has called on Russian authorities to bring all those responsible for the assassination of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya to justice, including those who ordered her killing.

Politkovskaya, a correspondent for the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, was murdered in Moscow on October 7, 2006, after years of reporting on human rights abuses, including in Chechnya.

In a statement marking the 20th anniversary of her assassination, members of the Media Freedom Coalition said impunity for crimes against journalists and media workers must not be allowed to continue.

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The coalition said Russia has systematically eroded media freedom and independent journalism over the past two decades, with repression intensifying since Moscow launched its full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022.

It cited Russia’s ranking of 172nd out of 180 countries in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index as evidence of the severe pressure facing journalists in the country.

According to the coalition, journalists and media organisations in Russia have faced designation as “foreign agents” and “undesirable” organisations, as well as threats, intimidation, detention, prosecution, criminal cases in absentia and lengthy prison sentences.

It also raised concerns over the so-called “civic death law” and what it described as increasing transnational repression against journalists.

The coalition said it stands with journalists and media workers who continue to document Russia’s war against Ukraine, corruption, repression and human rights abuses despite censorship, prosecution, restrictive legislation, forced exile and other forms of pressure.

It urged the Russian Federation to allow journalists to work freely and safely, release people it said had been unjustly detained or imprisoned, and end the transnational persecution and criminalisation of journalists.

The coalition also called on Russian authorities to end impunity for crimes against journalists and ensure accountability for those who order, facilitate or carry out attacks.

It further urged Russia to uphold its international human rights obligations, including the right to freedom of expression.

The statement was signed by Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.