OSCE media freedom representative welcomes Gongadze conviction, calls for further investigations

VIENNA, 30 January 2013 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, today welcomed the conviction of the murderer of Ukrainian journalist Georgyi Gongadze, while urging the authorities to continue to pursue the instigators of this crime.

Her call comes as the Pechersky District Court in Kiev on 29 January convicted former police general Aleksei Pukach of strangling and beheading Gongadze in September 2000, and sentenced him to life in prison.

“Finally, after twelve long years of suffering and uncertainty for Gongadze’s family, friends and colleagues, justice has been done. But those who ordered this crime remain at large,” said Mijatović.

“There is still a long way to go to break the vicious circle of impunity for those who instigate violence against journalists, in Ukraine and beyond.”