Moscow, 11 May 2000 (RFE/RL) - Editors at Russia's Media-MOST group says a raid on their headquarters by tax police this morning violates both the constitution and the law on the media. The editors said the raid was "aimed at hindering" the group's professional activity.
Igor Malashenko, deputy chairman of Media-MOST's board of directors, said it might have been prompted by their journalists' investigations into corruption and their coverage of Russia's military campaign in Chechnya.
"I assume it (the raid) was an attempt to confiscate material, an attempt to find material related to a journalistic investigation that could serve as the basis for further journalistic investigation into corruption in the high echelons of the Russian government and the law enforcement agencies."
The Media-MOST group brings together some of the best-known private media outlets in Russia, sometimes critical of the Kremlin policies. It includes the national NTV television channel, the Echo Moscow radio station, and the Sevodnya daily newspaper.
"I assume it (the raid) was an attempt to confiscate material, an attempt to find material related to a journalistic investigation that could serve as the basis for further journalistic investigation into corruption in the high echelons of the Russian government and the law enforcement agencies."
The Media-MOST group brings together some of the best-known private media outlets in Russia, sometimes critical of the Kremlin policies. It includes the national NTV television channel, the Echo Moscow radio station, and the Sevodnya daily newspaper.