Rights court finds Russia did not properly investigate murder of activist

STRASBOURG, France (CN) — Europe’s top rights court found on Tuesday that Russia failed to properly investigate the 2009 murder of a human rights advocate, citing in part Moscow’s refusal to hand over the full case file. 

The complaint was brought before the European Court of Human Rights by the sister of activist Natalia Estemirova, who argued that the Russian authorities had repeatedly and deliberately failed to investigate or prosecute Estemirova's kidnapping and assassination. 

“Given the government’s failure to submit the entire investigation file, capable of corroborating or refuting the applicant’s allegation of ineffectiveness of the investigation, the court is not in a position to conclude that the investigation was adequate,” the Strasbourg-based court wrote. 

At the time of her murder, Estemirova was working for the leading Russian human rights organization Memorial Human Rights Center. As she left her home in the Chechen capital of Grozny in July 2009, she was forced into a car by armed men and her bullet-ridden body was later found in the neighboring North Caucasus republic of Ingushetia. 

Th case drew the attention of world leaders including then-United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who said at the time he was "appalled and saddened" by Estemirova's murder. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also expressed "outrage" over the killing.

The Chechen region has been a hotbed of conflict since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. That year, separatists declared independence but Russia repeatedly intervened militarily. Unlike the rest of Russia, the population of Chechnya is 95% Muslim and the national government has accused residents of encouraging terrorist activities. 

Estemirova’s husband was killed during the First Chechen War in the mid-1990s and his death spurred her to leave her job as a history teacher and begin documenting human rights abuses in the region. 

“We are still waiting for the Russian government to carry out an effective investigation into the murder of our friend and colleague, Natalia Estemirova. The government’s inaction in this heinous crime is a black stain that perpetuates human rights abuses in Chechnya,” the New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a 2019 retrospective about her murder.

In 2007, Russia installed Ramzan Kadyrov as the president of Chechnya. Kadyrov, the son of the previous president who was assassinated in 2004, has been roundly condemned by international organizations for widespread human rights abuses. Human Rights Watch has found extensive use of torture squads by Kadyrov’s government, describing the authorities' treatment of the civilian population as a crime against humanity. 

While the human rights court found Russia's investigation inadequate, it held that the government was likely not involved in Estemirova’s murder.

“Having regard to the case-file material and the parties’ submissions, the court considers that it has not been established to the required standard of proof – 'beyond reasonable doubt' – that the state agents had perpetrated the crime,” the seven-judge panel wrote. 

Rachel Denber, deputy director of Human Rights Watch’s Europe and Central Asia division, said the conclusion the Russian government wasn’t involved in the killing is only based on the lack of evidence collected by authorities.  

"The lack of sufficient evidence the court cited is a direct result of Russia’s failure to adequately investigate her outrageous murder. Yet it’s this failure that allows the Russian authorities to evade responsibility for her killing," Denber told Courthouse News on Tuesday. 

The court ordered the Russian Federation to pay Estemirova’s sister, Svetlana Estemirova, 20,000 euros ($24,000) in damages. 

Established in 1959 by the European Convention on Human Rights, the court protects the civil and political rights of Europeans and has ruled against Moscow several times in recent years for human rights violations. Earlier this year, the court found that Russia committed several human rights violations during a 2008 war with the former Soviet republic of Georgia. It’s also called for the release of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. 

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