Nadira Isayeva or Isaeva (russian: Нади́ра Иса́ева) is a Russian journalist who has been internationally recognized for her reporting on security issues in

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, ( ady, Темыр Къафкъас, Temır Qafqas; kbd, Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз, İṩxhərə Qauqaz; ce, Къилбаседа Кавказ, Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz; , os, Цӕгат Кавказ, Cægat Kavkaz, inh, ...

. Isayeva is editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper ''

Chernovik ''Chernovik'' (russian: Черновик for "Rough Draft") is a weekly newspaper published by Svoboda Slova (translated as "Freedom of Speech") and based in the Republic of Dagestan, North Caucasus region, Russia. Reporters Without Borders has des ...

'' (English: ''Rough Draft'') in

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...

, described by

Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...

as "Dagestan’s leading independent newspaper". In this role, she ran a series of articles criticizing the

Federal Security Service The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) RF; rus, Федеральная служба безопасности Российской Федерации (ФСБ России), Federal'naya sluzhba bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Feder ...

's tactics in fighting the region's

insurgency An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irregu ...

. In 2008, she published an interview with a former guerrilla leader in which the subject accused local authorities of corruption and connections to the

Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty, Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of th ...

. She was subsequently arrested on 31 July under anti-extremist legislation for "inciting hatred toward law enforcement officials" and other charges. If convicted, she would have faced up to five years' imprisonment. ''Chernovik'' reporters Magomed Magomedov, Artur Mamayev and Timur Mustafayev were also charged, along with their lawyer Biyakai Magomedov. The trial began in January 2010, with the prosecution claiming that Isayeva's articles "publicly justified terrorism". The prosecution also required her to take part in multiple psychological and linguistic examinations, on which its case was largely built. Following a defense challenge, the findings of these examinations were overturned by the Federal Centre for Forensic Examination in Moscow, and the case against Isayeva and her colleagues was dismissed on 19 May 2011. Following her acquittal, Isayeva stated that she saw the case as "a test for the institution of press freedom" in Dagestan. Isayeva's reporting and prosecution drew the attention of numerous press and press freedom organizations. The editorial board of the US newspaper ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' has praised Isayeva's work, calling her a "first-rate journalist" and "hero". UK press freedom group ARTICLE 19 condemned her prosecution as part of a "trend" of harassment by authorities of Dagestani reporters. Reporters Without Borders and the

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journa ...

both hailed her acquittal, and the latter organization awarded her a 2010 International Press Freedom Award for risking her "freedom and security" for her reporting. Following continued harassment by authorities, Isayeva left Dagestan in November 2011. On 15 December

Gadzhimurat Kamalov Gadzhimurat Magomedovich Kamalov, (russian: Хаджимурад Магомедович Камалов, also spelled Gadjimurat, Gadzhimurad, Khadzhimurat, or Khadzhimurad Kamalov; 11 February 1965 – 15 December 2011) was a Russian investigati ...

, Isayeva's former boss at Chernovik and close colleague, was shot dead by an unknown gunman. CPJ described his death as "a lethal blow to press freedom" and "a massive loss for independent journalism in the North Caucasus, Russia's most dangerous place for reporters". After staying with friends in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

for two months, Isayeva was named a visiting scholar at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Harriman Institute The Harriman Institute, the first academic center in the United States devoted to the interdisciplinary study of Russia and the Soviet Union, was founded at Columbia University in 1946, with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation, as the Russia ...

in the U.S., arriving there in February 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isayeva, Nadira Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Russian journalists