(WAN/IFEX) – In a 19 November 2002 letter to Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, WAN expressed its grave concern over the reported discovery of the body of journalist Mikhail Kolomiyets. According to reports, the body of Kolomiyets, founder and director of the financial news agency Ukrainian News in Kiev, who went missing on 21 October, has […]
(WAN/IFEX) – In a 19 November 2002 letter to Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, WAN expressed its grave concern over the reported discovery of the body of journalist Mikhail Kolomiyets.
According to reports, the body of Kolomiyets, founder and director of the financial news agency Ukrainian News in Kiev, who went missing on 21 October, has been found hanged in an apartment in Belarus. Following his disappearance, Kolomiyets’ colleagues asked national authorities to investigate his disappearance, fearing that he had been targeted because of his agency’s reporting.
Shortly after the body was discovered, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry stated that Kolomiyets’ death was suicide and that there was no link to his professional activities.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the president:
– noting that while you respect the ministry’s desire to deal with this matter as expeditiously as possible, a full and impartial investigation into Kolomiyets’ disappearance and death should be held
Appeals To
His Excellency Leonid Kuchma
President of Ukraine
Kiev, Ukraine
C/o Permanent Representative to UN
E-mail: ukraine@un.intPlease copy appeals to WAN.
