Russia’s media regulator has called for the cancellation of broadcast licenses for the Website and the print edition of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, which suspended its work in Russia at the end of March.
The main media outlet was forced to stop publishing in Russia due to the country’s crackdown on critics of the conflict in Ukraine, and a newsroom was set up in Latvia, but the European edition’s website was blocked in Russia.
In its account on the social network Telegram, the newspaper’s newsroom reported this Thursday that the Roskomnadzor agency had applied to a court to cancel the broadcasting license of Website www.novayagazeta.ru, which would theoretically prohibit the publication of journalistic content.
EITHER Website offers free access to the archives of the newspaper, known for its in-depth investigations into the corruption of Russian elites and serious human rights violations, especially in Chechnya.
The Roskomnadzor agency, quoted by the TASS news agency, confirmed that it had requested the revocation of the license to distribute the print edition of Novaya Gazeta, for not having received “the editorial statutes” on time.
The newspaper’s spokeswoman, Nadezhda Prusenkova, also quoted by TASS, said that the second request was linked to a bureaucratic procedure dating back to 2006, when the newspaper re-registered with the authorities.
At the end of March, Novaya Gazeta, whose editor-in-chief Dmitry Muratov received the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, decided to stop publishing online and printed for fear of a ban.
The 2021 Nobel Peace Prize goes to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, who fight for freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia
The authorities accused him of violating the law on organizations and persons designated as “foreign agents”. The media are obliged to scrupulously indicate this condition whenever they mention a “foreign agent” entity, under penalty of sanctions.
According to Novaya Gazeta, it was for alleged violations of this law that Roskomnadzor requested cancellation of the license. The two Rozkomnadzor complaints are now due to be considered in court at unannounced dates.
“We are preparing for the hearings, to defend our right”the newspaper’s editorial team said Thursday. “We are here and we will stay. We are not saying goodbye,” they added.
Last weekend, the Russian authorities blocked another Website launched by Novaya Gazeta and dedicated to a new print magazine, “Novaya Rasskaz-Gazeta”, published by the editorial team in Russia.
Novaya Gazeta editor-in-chief Dmitri Mouratov sold the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize medal in June for €98.3 million to children displaced by the war in Ukraine.
Proceeds from the auction, held in New York, went to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) program for Ukrainian children displaced by war, said auctioneer Heritage Auctions, which organized the sale.
Source: Observadora
