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A well-known Russian journalist, head of the Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations Oleg Panfilov in early November moved for permanent residency from Moscow to Tbilisi. In a conversation with journalists he explained that his decision was based on the fact that in Russia unknowns were constantly threatening him through the internet with physical lynching.
This news appeared on the internet on the 9th of November. To me this «news» was known two months ago: Oleg himself had told me about his desire to forsake Russia. In so doing no arguments in the form of threats did he name. I think that in this situation, unnamed colleagues were inaccurately treating the essence of the event.
Oleg told me that he intends to live in Georgia and to read lectures at the journalism school in the Tbilisi state university, as well as to actively cooperate on the "Caucasian telechannel" being opened as of the new year in Tbilisi, which, presumably, will broadcast to the whole Caucasian region.
Also Oleg spoke about how the Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations will continue to work as before. The Center - is a noticeable phenomenon in the milieu of human rights journalism and the system of monitoring the observance of the rights of journalists not only in the RF, but on the whole post-Soviet space as well.
The appearances and declarations of Oleg Panfilov on this topic are well-known to my colleagues. Thus, in particular, he , making reference to facts, asserted that in recent years a catastrophic situation has evolved in the Russian mass information media. As a result of the crisis, several thousand journalists have lost their jobs - mass information media have reduced staffs by 15-30%. In so doing "it is complex to say specifically how many mass information media employees were reduced with violation of Labor legislation", noted the journalist.
Panfilov had likewise declared that Russia is found in first place in the world with respect to the quantity of initiated criminal cases in relation to journalists. In so doing 95% of them are initiated by representatives of the power.
By the way, Oleg Panfilov is far from the first (and, most likely) not the last journalist to abandon Russia. In their time from the country left correspondent of radio «Liberty» Andrei Babitsky; television presenter Savik Shuster; «Novaya gazeta» correspondent Sergei Zolovkin; the female Chechen journalist Mainat Abdullayeva; journalists from Karachayevo-Chnrkessia Yuri Bagrov and Fatima Tlisova; Elena Tregubova, who had written the book «Tales of a Kremlin Digger»; journalist from Kemerovo Alexander Kosvintsev; Manana Aslamazyan, who had headed the foundation "Educated Media" and the organization "Internews»; Mikhail Voitenko, former editor-in-chief of the authoritative net magazine "Morskoy bulletin - Sovfrakht"... The list can be continued. All of them were threatened by obvious danger. Panfilov, I can presume, could have had such danger lying in wait for him in the future.
At any rate, on the site Grani.Ru he said: «In Georgia I can feel myself professionally indispensable. I can take part in public processes, that are interesting to me. It is not wanted to conduct the remaining years to no purpose... If one is to speak of some kind of undercurrent, then, of course, it is there. The undercurrent consists of the fact that Georgia - is a country much more free than Russia, and here there are prospects for development both for journalistics, and for society, it is more interesting for me here now. Unfortunately, I have to say that in Russia there are fewer and fewer such prospects, and to be honest, I am already sufficiently disenchanted in the prospects of my work in Russia»
Photo: Oleg Panfilov.
Source
I think there is something that nobody of these personns would recognize : They understand that with the progressive recovering of Russian economy they have lost their unique chance , their " window of oppurtinity " , of a regime change in Russia throught an " orange scheme " and this is for years , for decades .
That's the real meaning of Mr Panfilov's satement :
" I have to say that in Russia there are fewer and fewer such prospects, and to be honest, I am already sufficiently disenchanted in the prospects of my work in Russia "
That's the resaon why the " Tatar cativist " Fawzia ????? is also leaving Russia : They have failed !
And they are all seaking a " warm " ( and well paid by the Us congress for Radio Liberty ) place in Georgia or somewhere else !
Russia needs to show the international community it can investigate the deaths and attacks on journalists (up to what ever level it goes). The more attention we can raise on this issue the better. Impunity is one of the key issues here.
http://stevehynd.wordpress.com/2009/11/22/anna-politkovskaya-a-letter-to-anna/
Daniel, the threats to his life via internet and telephone also look pretty worrisome. Even if there were great prospects of achieving some improvement of the situation in Russia via an "orange revolution", it would be perfectly understandable if he preferred to leave the country. Considering that both the lack of prospects and the surprising anger that Russians and the Russian government have against opposition, even when this opposition has no prospects, then of course his decision is explainable. You would do the same in his place, I am sure.
"Considering that both the lack of prospects and the surprising anger that Russians and the Russian government have against opposition, even when this opposition has no prospects"
There's no surprise here. These types got things their way in 1991, and the consequence for tens of millions of Russians was utter destitution. There is no reason at all to believe that giving these types their way now would have any other outcome, especially considering the chaos that has resulted from the boundless irresponsibility of the "Orange" types in Ukraine. This has gotten so bad, that now only 30% of Ukrainians polled approve of the change to Democracy, and only 36% approve of the change to a market economy. 62% of Ukrainians think they are now worse off than under Communism.
http://pewglobal.org/reports/display.php?ReportID=267
Not to mention the fact that the end of "Soviet genocide" in Ukraine left 52 million Ukrainians, while now there are 46 million, and deaths exceed births by ~240,000/year.
So there is really no reason for surprise that people are hostile to reckless, whiny, irresponsible dissident types who couldn't organize their way out of a wet paper bag with a blowtorch and a map.
Its interesting if Daniel B includes all the murdered journalists and civil rights activists in the list of persons who lost their "place" in the "new Russia"
better look where Russia is on Transparency International's latest corruption index...
There's no surprise here. These types got things their way in 1991, and the consequence for tens of millions of Russians was utter destitution.
Still this is wrong, rkka. People cannot be threatened of death just because you think they were bad administrators -- can you imagine death threats against President Bush in America just because many people there think worse of him than you think of "these types"?
There is no reason at all to believe that giving these types their way now would have any other outcome, especially considering the chaos that has resulted from the boundless irresponsibility of the "Orange" types in Ukraine.
Why? If they can convince no one, if nobody really buys what they're saying -- aren't they just like the American Communist Party, who also has absolutely no impact on American politics? Why fear them then? Mentioning Ukraine is like saying Americans should be afraid of the American Communists just because of what the North Korean Communists did to North Korea: a non-sequitur.
As for the death in Ukraine: the Russian-sponsored Holodomor was done to kill. The current decrease in Ukrainian population comes from there being too few babies born (plus immigration). Or would you want to compare the current decrease in population in Russia with what the Nazis did to the ex-USSR?
Ukraine has problems, but they don't come from democracy, they come from corruption, just like Russia. In fact, comparing Russia to Ukraine just shows how bad corruption is, no matter what system you have.
Democracy is still the best way to have legitimacy. And corruption is still the best way to destroy hope in the future. Believe me, my own native country (Brazil) was kept down for decades and decades because of corruption.
rkka, if you want to gain some understanding of the problems Ukraine is facing right now and where they come from, have a look at this blog (and especially at the discussions between the author and the commenters -- ask him a few questions too):
http://tap-the-talent.blogspot.com/
"Still this is wrong, rkka. People cannot be threatened of death just because you think they were bad administrators"
The real poblem with them isn't so much that they were bad administrators, though they certainly were that, but that they had, and have, no concern whatsoever about the impact they had, with policies that produced deaths by the million, and utter destitution for tens of millions more.
And they just don't care.
"As for the death in Ukraine: the Russian-sponsored Holodomor was done to kill."
Then why were the Red Arm's grain reserves, accumulated in case of war with Japan, taken for famine relief?
"The current decrease in Ukrainian population comes from there being too few babies born"
You forgot to mention a death rate thats about 30% higher than it was in 1991.... Yes, just like Yushchenko, vast concern for a very flexible number of Ukrainians dead seventy years, while passing over in silence Ukrainians dying now.