On April 1, 2013, the 20 year anniversary of Novaya Gazeta, a Russian newspaper critical of the government and known for its investigative reporting, Head of the Chechen Republic (formerly President) Ramzan Kadyrov took to his Instagram [1][ru], as he often does these days, to publicly express respect for the publication and its journalists, even thought he “sometimes disagrees with them.” Some bloggers [2][ru] were flabbergasted [3][ru] — after all, it is a widely held belief on RuNet that Kadyrov (then Chechen Prime Minister) is at least partially responsible for the assassination of Novaya Gazeta reporter Anna Politkovskaya [4] in 2006.
Chechen Leader's Tone-deaf Instagram Post
· Written by Andrey Tselikov
Categories: Eastern & Central Europe, Russia, Citizen Media, Freedom of Speech, Media & Journalism, Politics, Protest, RuNet Echo