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On Thursday, June 6, in the center of Skopje, the Movement Against Police Brutality will mark two years since the murder of Martin Neshkovski, which sparked massive grassroots protests in Macedonia in the summer of 2011. The Facebook event [mk] about the memorial service states:

On Thursday, June 6, at 11 AM, we shall visit the crime scene and light a symbolic candle to remind us that we allowed ourselves to lose a young life. May he be remembered!

During the gathering the “Stop Police Brutality” Movement will hold a press conference to present activities marking its second anniversary. Additionally, we shall express support for the Turkish people who mount bloody resistance to police brutality these days. [...]

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“Who's next for Liquidation?” – a poster at today's journalist protest in Skopje, referring to the official code name of the operation (“Liquidation”), in which journalist Tomislav Kezarovski was captured along with others on May 28. Photo by Biserka Velkovska/@bvelkovska, used with permission.

Macedonian journalists gathered [mk; video and text: sq, mk] in front of the Criminal Court in the capital Skopje today to protest against the arrest of their colleague, Tomislav Kezarovski, according to this note [en] posted in the Macedonian Facebook group titled “Journalists and citizens in defense of the right to freedom of information.” It appears that the official reason for Kezarovski's 30-day detention is a story he wrote five years ago for a publication that no longer exists. On the other hand, he has been investigating the death of Nikola Mladenov, publisher and editor of an independent media outlet, for the past two months. More »

Ukrainian blogger Olena Bilozerska's User Winner prize in the Bobs 2013 Best Blog Ukrainian nomination has been revoked, writes [ru] Mustafa Nayyem, the Ukrainian member of the Bobs 2013 jury, on his Facebook page, linking [ru] to the official statement [uk] posted on the Bobs 2013 website. The scandal (more on it in this GV text) seems far from being over in Ukraine, however, as many netizens are displeased with the decision. Nayyem's Facebook announcement has generated over 150 comments so far, many of them critical of the contest organizers in general and Nayyem in particular. In one of the few English-language comments in that thread, Andreas Umland, a Kyiv-based German political scientist, writes:

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On FT.com's beyondbric blog, Graham Stack writes [en] about the “murky takeover” and “a tangled history of offshore ownership” of the Ukrainian TV station TVi, 31 of whose journalists resigned [uk] on April 29.

On April 26, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued a statement [en; fr; uk - .pdf] on the situation at the Ukrainian TV station TVi:

Reporters Without Borders condemns the sudden change of management at the opposition TV station TVi, announced three days ago, and is disturbed to learn that ensuing internal disputes have resulted in broadcasting being suspended. [...]

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April 26, 2013, marks the 27th anniversary of the 1986 Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster. Andriy Pryimachenko of peredova.com has created a video transcript [ru] of the audio recordings of the conversations that took place shortly after the blast between the dispatchers of the plant's firefighting unit and other firefighting dispatchers and officials. On his Korrespondent.net blog, Ivan Mateyko comments [uk] on this “most horrifying phone talk of the 20th century”:

[...] Hard to guess what these people were thinking back then and whether they knew how serious the situation and its possible consequences were, but the horror in their voices is evident. [...]