Russian Activist Kidnapped and Murdered

According to the New York Times and other sources, Natalya Estemirova, a journalist and activist in Chechnya, was kidnapped and murdered. Estemirova documented the struggles and abuses going on in this tumultuous area of the world for over a decade. Estemirova recieved several awards for human rights activities.

According to reports, Estemirova was grabbed outside of her home this morning. Her body was found on the side of the road. Many believe that her death was directly linked to her activism and her open criticism of president Ramzan Kadyrov.

This comes as another example of the terrible price of exposing the corruption and wrong-doing in our world. Journalists, especially women journalists, have often faced serious consequences for being to interested in things they shouldn't be, and for talking about things thos in power have wanted to keep secret. Anna Politkovskaya (who is memorialized in the photo) was another Russian journalist who was killed in 2006, and there are also the cases of Euna Lee and Laura Ling.

Photo Courtesy of www.flickr/ajau