NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Georgiy R. Gongadze

Georgiy Ruslanovich Gongadze (Ukrainian: Георгій Русланович Ґонґадзе, Heorhiy Ruslanovych Gongadze, May 21, 1969 – September 2000?) was a Ukrainian journalist kidnapped and murdered in 2000. The circumstances of his death became a national scandal and a focus for protests against the government of the then President, Leonid Kuchma. Gongadze's killers have yet to be publicly identified or put on trial, although two men accused of his murder were arrested in March 2005. His widow Myroslava Gongadze and their two children received political asylum in the United States and have lived there since 2001. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... May 21 is the 141st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (142nd in leap years). ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday For other uses, see Number 1969. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... Leonid Kuchma Leonid Danylovych Kuchma (Леонід Кучма) (born August 9, 1938) was the second President of Ukraine from July 19, 1994 to January 23, 2005. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Miroslava Gongadze Full-time TV and radio correspondent VOA, Free lance correspondent Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Visiting Scholar at Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian StudiesGeorge Washington University(Washington D.C) Catapulted to international prominence after the loss of her husband, Gongadze resolved to focus all her efforts on... Power lines leading to a trash dump hover just overhead in El Carpio, a Nicaraguan refugee camp in Costa Rica Under international law, a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her...

Career

Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, Gongadze was the son of a Georgian politician and a Ukrainian nurse. He was educated at the Ivan Franko National University of L'viv in western Ukraine. His mother Lesya was born there and lives in Lviv now. He became a successful journalist, first in Georgia (where he reported on the conflict in Abkhazia) and then in Ukraine. He worked for the Kiev-based radio station Kontynent, on which he had his own show called First round with Heorhiy Gongadze. His strongly independent line soon attracted hostility from the increasingly authoritarian government of Leonid Kuchma; during the October 1999 presidential election, his commentaries prompted a call from Kuchma's headquarters to say "that he had been blacklisted to be dealt with after the election." Visiting New York in January 2000 with other Ukrainian journalists, he warned of "the strangulation of the freedom of speech and information in our state." Tbilisi (Georgian áƒ—áƒ‘áƒ˜áƒšáƒ˜áƒ¡áƒ˜) is the capital city of the country of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura (Mtkvari) river, at 41Â°43â€²N 44Â°47â€²E. Tbilisi is still sometimes known by its former Turkish name of Tiflis. ... A nurse is a health care professional who is engaged in the practice of nursing. ... The building of the University. ... Lviv coat of arms Motto: Semper fidelis Municipal government City council (Львівська міська рада) Mayor City chairman Lyubomyr Bunyak Area 171,01 km² Population total 2000 density 808,900 4786/km² Founded city rights 13th century 1353 Area code + 0322 Latitude Longitude 49°51′ N 24°01′ E Twin towns... Abkhazia (Abkhaz ÐÒ§ÑÐ½Ñ‹/Aphsny, Georgian áƒáƒ¤áƒ®áƒáƒ–áƒ”áƒ—áƒ˜/Apxazeti, Russian ÐÐ±Ñ…Ð°ÌÐ·Ð¸Ñ/Abhazia) is a region of 8,600 kmÂ² (3,300 sq. ... A monument to St. ... Official language(s) English Capital Albany Largest city New York City Area - Total - Width - Length - % water - Latitude - Longitude Ranked 27th 141,205 kmÂ² 455 km 530 km 13. ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

In April 2000, Gongadze co-founded a news website, Ukrayinska Pravda (Ukrainian Truth), as a means of sidestepping the government's increasing influence over the mainstream media. He observed that following the muzzling of a prominent pro-opposition newspaper after the election, "today there is practically no objective information available about Ukraine". The website specialized in political news and commentary, focusing particularly on President Kuchma, the country's wealthy "oligarchs" and the official media. This article is about the year 2000. ... Ukrayinska Pravda (Українська правда Ukrainian: Ukrainian Truth) is an anti-Kuchma internet newspaper partially funded by NED. Ukrayinska Pravda online (English) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Ukrainian) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Russian) Categories: Newspaper stubs | Ukrainian newspapers | English-language newspapers ...

In June 2000, Gongadze wrote an open letter to Ukraine's chief prosecutor about harassment from the SBU, the Ukrainian secret police, directed towards himself and his Ukrayinska Pravda colleagues and apparently related to an investigation into a murder case in the southern port of Odesa. He complained that had been forced into hiding because of harassment from the secret police, that he said he and his family were being followed, that his staff were being harassed, and that the SBU were spreading a rumor that he was wanted on a murder charge. [1] This article is about the year 2000. ... The three-letter initialism SBU has several uses: St. ... Odessa or Odesa (Ukrainian Одеса, Russian Одесса, Turkish Hacıbey) is a Ukrainian portcity on the Black Sea and the center of countrys Odeska oblast. Population 1,012,500 (2004). ...

Disappearance and investigations

Gongadze disappeared on September 16, 2000 after failing to return home. Foul play was suspected from the outset. The matter immediately attracted widespread public attention and media interest. 80 journalists signed an open letter to President Kuchma urging an investigation and complaining that "during the years of Ukrainian independence, not a single high-profile crime against journalists has been fully resolved." Kuchma responded by ordering an immediate inquiry. This was, however, viewed with some skepticism. Opposition politician Hryhoriy Omelchenko reported that the disappearance had coincided with Gongadze receiving documents on corruption within the president's own entourage. The Ukrainian Parliament set up a parallel inquiry run by a special commission. Neither investigation produced any results. September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

Two months later, on November 3, 2000, a body was found in a forest in Tarashcha raion, some 70 km (40 miles) outside Kiev. The corpse had been decapitated and doused in acid, apparently to make identification more difficult; forensic investigations found that the acid bath and decapitation had occurred while the victim was still alive. A group of journalists first identified it as being that of Gongadze, a finding confirmed a few weeks later by his wife Myroslava. In a bizarre twist, the corpse was then confiscated by the police and resurfaced in a morgue in Kiev. The authorities did not officially acknowledge that the body was that of Gongadze until the following February and did not definitively confirm it until as late as March 2003. The body was eventually returned to Gongadze's family amidst disputes about its identification and was buried in September 2002, two years after his disappearance. November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... An acid (from Arabic Azait meaning oil, often represented by the generic formula AH) is typically a water-soluble, sour-tasting chemical compound. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On November 28, 2000, opposition politician Oleksandr Moroz publicized secret tape recordings which he claimed implicated President Kuchma in Gongadze's murder. The recordings were said to be of discussions between Kuchma, presidential chief of staff Volodymyr Lytvyn, and Interior Minister Yuriy Kravchenko, and were claimed to have been provided by an unnamed SBU officer (later named as Major Mykola Mel'nychenko, Kuchma's bodyguard). The conversations included comments expressing annoyance at Gongadze's writings as well as discussions of ways to shut him up, such as deporting him and arranging from him to be kidnapped and taken to Chechnya. Killing him was, however, not mentioned and doubt was cast on the tapes' authenticity, as the quality of the recordings was poor. Moroz told the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada (parliament) that "the professionally organized disappearance, a slow-moving investigation, disregard for the most essential elements of investigation and incoherent comments by police officials suggest that the case was put together." November 28 is the 332nd day (333rd on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... Oleksandr Moroz. ... Volodymyr Lytvyn Volodymyr Mykhaylovych Lytvyn (Ukrainian: Ð’Ð¾Ð»Ð¾Ð´Ð¸Ð¼Ð¸Ñ€ ÐœÐ¸Ñ…Ð°Ð¹Ð»Ð¾Ð²Ð¸Ñ‡ Ð›Ð¸Ñ‚Ð²Ð¸Ð½) (b. ... The Ministerstvo Vnutrishnikh Sprav (MVS; Ministry of Internal Affairs) is the national police authority of Ukraine. ... Yuriy Fedorovich Kravchenko (Ukrainian: Ð®Ñ€Ñ–Ð¹ Ð¤ÐµÐ´Ð¾Ñ€Ð¾Ð²Ð¸Ñ‡ ÐšÑ€Ð°Ð²Ñ‡ÐµÐ½ÐºÐ¾, March 5, 1951â€“March 4, 2005), was the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine from 1995 until he was fired in March 2001. ... (Major) Mykola Melnychenko (Микола Мельниченко) was a bodyguard of the former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma. ... Capital Grozny Area - total - % water 78th - 15,500 kmÂ² - negligible Population - Total - Density 49th - est. ... Verkhovna Rada. ...

The affair became a major political scandal (referred to in Ukraine as the "Cassette Scandal" or, perhaps inevitably, "Tapegate"). Kuchma strongly denied Moroz's accusations and threatened a libel suit, blaming the tapes on foreign agents. He later acknowledged that his voice was indeed one of those on the tapes, but claimed that they had been selectively edited to distort his meaning. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... In English and American law, and systems based on them, libel and slander are two forms of defamation (or defamation of character), which is the tort or delict of making a false statement of fact that injures someones reputation. ...

Crises and controversy

The affair became an international crisis for the Ukrainian government during 2001, with the European Union expressing dissatisfaction at the official investigation, rumors of Ukrainian suspension from the Council of Europe, and censure from the OSCE, which described Gongadze's death as a case of "censorship by killing" and castigated the "extremely unprofessional" investigation. [2] Mass demonstrations erupted in Kiev in February 2001, calling for the resignation of Kuchma and the dismissal of other key officials. He did sack the head of the SBU, Leonid Derkach, and the chief of the presidential bodyguard, Volodymyr Shepel, but refused to step down. [3] The government invited the US FBI to investigate, though it does not appear that this offer was ever taken up. The protests were eventually forcibly broken up by the police. The Palace of Europe in Strasbourg The Council of Europe is an international organizations of 46 member states in the European region. ... The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is an international organization for security. ... Ukrayina bez Kuchmy! or UBK (Ukrainian: Україна без Кучми!—Ukraine without Kuchma!) was a mass protest campaign that took place in Ukraine in 2000–2001. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ...

In May 2001, interior minister Yuri Smirnov announced that the murder had been solved - it was attributed to a random act of violence committed by two "hooligans" with links to a gangster called "Cyclops". Conveniently, both of the killers were said to now be dead. The claim was dismissed by the opposition and by the government's own prosecutor-general, whose office issued a statement denying Smirnov's claims. [4] 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... Ultras at FC Twente - SC Heerenveen in 2002 Hooliganism is unruly and destructive behaviour, usually by gangs of young people. ...

Mass protests again broke out in Kiev and other Ukrainian cities in September 2002 to mark the second anniversary of Gongadze's death. The demonstrators again called for Kuchma's resignation but the protests again failed to achieve their goal, with police breaking up the protesters' camp. 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The prosecutor of the Tarascha district, where Gongadze's body was found, was convicted in May 2003 for abuse of office and falsification of evidence. Serhiy Obozov was found guilty of forging documents and negligence in the investigation and was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison. However, he was immediately released due to a provision of Ukraine's amnesty laws. [5] 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In June 2004, the government claimed that a convicted gangster identified only as "K" had confessed to Gongadze's murder, although there was no independent confirmation of the claim. The ongoing investigation received a setback when a key witness died of spinal injuries apparently sustained while in police custody. [6] 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Gongadze's death became a major issue in the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, in which the opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko pledged to solve the case if he became president. Yushchenko did become president following the subsequent Orange Revolution and immediately launched a new investigation, replacing the country's prosecutor-general. (Redirected from 2004 Ukrainian presidential election) The presidential election held in November and December 2004 in Ukraine was mostly a political battle between Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and former Prime Minister and opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko. ... Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko (Ukrainian: Ð’Ñ–ÐºÑ‚Ð¾Ñ€ ÐÐ½Ð´Ñ€Ñ–Ð¹Ð¾Ð²Ð¸Ñ‡ Ð®Ñ‰ÐµÐ½ÐºÐ¾) (born 23 February 1954) is the President of Ukraine. ... Orange-clad supporters of Viktor Yushchenko gather in Independence Square in Kiev. ...

Resolution?

On March 1, 2005, Yushchenko announced that the journalist's suspected killers had been arrested. [7] Prosecutor-General Svyatoslav Piskun announced the following day that the case had been solved, telling Ukrainian television that Gongadze had been strangled by employees of the Interior Ministry. Two of the alleged killers were said to be senior policemen working for the Interior Ministry's criminal investigations directorate (CID).[8] Former Interior Minister Yuri Kravchenko, one of those recorded with Leonid Kuchma in the "cassette scandal", was also said to be under investigation. The two police colonels accused of the killing have been detained and a third senior policeman, identified as CID commander Oleksiy Pukach, was being sought on an international arrest warrant. March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Svyatoslav Mykhaylovych Piskun (8 March 1959) was the Ukrainian Prosecutor-General in 2002-2003 and 2005. ... Yuriy Fedorovich Kravchenko (Ukrainian: Юрій Федорович Кравченко, March 5, 1951–March 4, 2005), was the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine from 1995 until he was fired in March 2001. ...

The Ukrainian newspaper Siehodnia ("Today") reported that Gongadze had been abducted by the policemen and accidentally shot in the head while seated in a vehicle, necessitating his decapitation (to avoid the bullet being recovered and matched to a police weapon). His body had been doused in petrol which had failed to burn properly, and had then been dumped. [9] Gasoline, as it is known in North America, or petrol, in many Commonwealth countries (sometimes also called motor spirit) is a petroleum-derived liquid mixture consisting primarily of hydrocarbons, used as fuel in internal combustion engines. ...

On March 4, Yuri Kravchenko was found dead in a dacha in the elite residential area of Koncha-Zaspa, outside Kiev. He had died from apparently self-inflicted gunshot wounds, though some speculated that he might have been assassinated to prevent him from testifying as a witness. Hryhory Omelchenko, who chaired the parliamentary committee that investigated the Gongadze case, told the New York Times that Kravchenko had ordered Pukach to abduct Gongadze on President Kuchma's orders. Kuchma himself has denied this allegation but has since been interviewed by investigators. March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... Dacha â–¶(?) (Russian: Ð´Ð°ÌÑ‡Ð°) is a name for summer home or vacation house in Russia and CIS countries where people spend their summer holidays and grow fruit and vegetables for their own use. ...

In April/May 2005, Piskun released more details of the ongoing investigation. He told the press that after Gongadze was murdered, a second group disinterred him and re-buried him where he was eventually found, in the constituency of Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz. According to Piskun, the aim was to undermine the government (led by Viktor Yushchenko when he was still Prime Minister). The second group was part of or allied with the United Social Democratic Party of Ukraine (SDPUo), a pro-oligarch grouping which had been hit hard by Yushchenko's crackdown on corruption and therefore wanted to see his government toppled. According to the journal Ukrayina moloda (April 14, 2005), the SDPUo moved Gongadze in order to discredit President Leonid Kuchma and force early elections, which could have led to party leader Medvedchuk succeeding Kuchma. Politics of Ukraine Politics of Ukraine Political parties in Ukraine Elections in Ukraine: President: 2004 SDPU(o) party emblem Social Democratic Party of Ukraine (United) or SDPU(U)or SDPU(o) (Ukrainian: Sotsial-Demokratychna Partiya Ukrayiny [Obyednana], Ð¡ÐžÐ¦Ð†ÐÐ›-Ð”Ð•ÐœÐžÐšÐ ÐÐ¢Ð˜Ð§ÐÐ ÐŸÐÐ Ð¢Ð†Ð¯ Ð£ÐšÐ ÐÐ‡ÐÐ˜ (ÐžÐ‘Ð„Ð”ÐÐÐÐ) or Ð¡Ð”ÐŸÐ£(Ðž)), is a Ukrainian political party. ...

Nobody was ever arrested or prosecuted for the murder of Georgiy Gongadze. Georgiy R. Gongadze (in Ukrainian Heorhiy Ruslanovych Honhadze) (May 21, 1969 – 2000) was a Ukrainian journalist kidnapped and murdered in 2000. ...

Name spelling disambiguation

Note that the pronunciation and sometimes spelling of Gongadze's name may differ following the phonetics of different languages. The proper Georgian name Georgi Gongadze became Георгий Гонгадзе in Russian and Георгій Гонгадзе in Ukrainian. While the Cyrillic character Г (He) is pronounced as G in Russian, its pronunciation in Ukrainian has no close match in English and is usually transliterated as H. This is why Gongadze (born of a Ukrainian mother and excellent Ukrainian speaker) was often mentioned as Heorhiy Honhadze in Ukrainian. To add further confusion, Ukrainian also uses the modified letter Ґ (Ghe) for a G in foreign names, which has been used in spelling Gongadze's last name (Ґонґадзе), but not his first name (Георгій). Some sources also refer to him as Georgy Gongadze. Pronunciation refers to: the way a word or a language is usually spoken; the manner in which someone utters a word. ... Proper spelling is the writing of a word or words with all necessary letters and diacritics present in an accepted, conventional order. ... Phonetics (from the Greek word Ï†Ï‰Î½Î®, phone = sound/voice) is the study of sounds (voice). ... Ge or He (Г, г) is a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet, pronounced differently in different languages. ... G is the seventh letter in the Roman alphabet. ... Pronunciation refers to: the way a word or a language is usually spoken; the manner in which someone utters a word. ... H is the eighth letter of the Latin alphabet. ... Ghe (Ґ, ґ, also called ge with upturn) is a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet pronounced like the G in go. Originally part of the Ukrainian and Belarusian alphabets, its function was replaced by the letter Ge (Г) in the Soviet Union. ...

References

The International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), founded in 1992, is a global network of more than 60 Non-governmental organisation that promotes and defends the right to freedom of expression. ...

External links

Categories: 1969 births | 2000 deaths | Ukrainian people | Georgian people | Murdered journalists | History of Kiev city | History of Ukraine Image File history File links Symbole-uk. ... Ukrayinska Pravda (Українська правда Ukrainian: Ukrainian Truth) is an anti-Kuchma internet newspaper partially funded by NED. Ukrayinska Pravda online (English) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Ukrainian) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Russian) Categories: Newspaper stubs | Ukrainian newspapers | English-language newspapers ... Image File history File links Symbole-uk. ... Ukrayinska Pravda (Українська правда Ukrainian: Ukrainian Truth) is an anti-Kuchma internet newspaper partially funded by NED. Ukrayinska Pravda online (English) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Ukrainian) Ukrayinska Pravda online (Russian) Categories: Newspaper stubs | Ukrainian newspapers | English-language newspapers ...

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