23 September 2007

Public Service Announcement

A couple of weeks ago I sent a friend who has long been involved with democracy movements in Central Asia a link to Craig Murray's blog. Unfortunately, due to the cash and clout of the gentleman at left, Alisher Usmanov, Murray has been muzzled. Jams O'Donnell at The Poor Mouth has a few posts on how and why, linking to Chicken Yoghurt, where there are copious links to more information on Usmanov's assault on free speech.

The following blogs are currently carrying this story (updated at Chicken Yoghurt):
Curious Hamster, Pickled Politics, Harry’s Place, Tim Worstall, Dizzy, Iain Dale, Ten Percent, Blairwatch, Davide Simonetti, Earthquake Cove, Turbulent Cleric (who suggests dropping a line to the FA about Mr Usmanov), Mike Power, Jailhouse Lawyer, Suesam, Devil’s Kitchen, The Cartoonist, Falco, Casualty Monitor, Forever Expat, Arseblog, Drink-soaked Trotsand another), Pitch Invasion, Wonko’s World, Roll A Monkey, Caroline Hunt, Westminster Wisdom, Chris K, Anorak, Mediawatchwatch, Norfolk Blogger, Chris Paul, Indymedia (with a list of Craig Murray’s articles that are currently unavailable), Obsolete, Tom Watson, Cynical Chatter, Reactionary Snob, Mr Eugenides, Matthew Sinclair, The Select Society, Liberal England, Davblog, Peter Gasston Pitch Perfect, Adelaide Green Porridge Cafe, Lunartalks, Tygerland, The Crossed Pond, Our Kingdom, Big Daddy Merk, Daily Mail Watch, Graeme’s, Random Thoughts, Nosemonkey, Matt Wardman, Politics in the Zeros, Love and Garbage, The Huntsman, Conservative Party Reptile, Ellee Seymour, Sabretache, Not A Sheep, Bartholomew’s Notes on Religion, The People’s Republic Of Newport, Life, the Universe & Everything, Arsenal Transfer Rumour Mill, The Green Ribbon, Blood & Treasure, The Last Ditch, Areopagitica, Football in Finland, An Englishman’s Castle, Freeborn John, Eursoc, The Back Four, Rebellion Suck!, Ministry of Truth, ModernityBlog, Beau Bo D’Or, Scots and Independent, The Splund, Bill Cameron, Podnosh, Dodgeblogium, Moving Target, Serious Golmal, Goonerholic, The Spine, Zero Point Nine, Lenin’s Tomb, The Durruti Column, The Bristol Blogger, ArseNews, David Lindsay, Quaequam Blog!, On A Quiet Day…, Kathz’s Blog, England Expects, Theo Spark, Duncan Borrowman, Senn’s Blog, Katykins, Jewcy, Kevin Maguire, Stumbling and Mumbling, Famous for 15 megapixels, Ordovicius, Tom Morris, AOL Fanhouse, Doctor Vee, The Curmudgeonly, The Poor Mouth, 1820, Hangbitch, Crooked Timber, ArseNole, Identity Unknown, Liberty Alone, Amused Cynicism, Clairwil, The Lone Voice, Tampon Teabag, Unoriginalname38, Special/Blown It, The Remittance Man, 18 Doughty Street, Laban Tall, Martin Bright, Spy Blog The Exile, poons, Jangliss, Who Knows Where Thoughts Come From?, Imagined Community, A Pint of Unionist Lite, Poldraw, Disillusioned And Bored, Error Gorilla, Indigo Jo, Swiss Metablog, Kate Garnwen Truemors, Asn14, D-Notice, The Judge, Political Penguin, Miserable Old Fart, Jottings, fridgemagnet, Blah Blah Flowers, J. Arthur MacNumpty, Tony Hatfield, Grendel, Charlie Whitaker, Matt Buck, The Waendel Journal, Marginalized Action Dinosaur, SoccerLens, Toblog, John Brissenden East Lower, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Peter Black AM, Boing Boing, BLTP, Gunnerblog, LFB UK, Liberal Revolution, Wombles, Focus on Sodbury…, Follow The Money, Freedom and Whisky, Melting Man, PoliticalHackUK, Simon Says…, Daily EM, From The Barrel of a Gun, The Fourth Place, The Armchair News Blog, Journalist und Optimist, Bristol Indymedia, Dave Weeden, Up North John, Gizmonaut, Spin and Spinners, Marginalia, Arnique, Heather Yaxley, The Whiskey Priest, On The Beat, Paul Canning, Martin Stabe, Mat Bowles, Pigdogfucker, Rachel North (193).

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10 Comments:

Blogger Taras said...

This guy has big plans for Ukraine:

http://www.reuters.com/article/tnBasicIndustries-SP/idUSL1942970920070219
http://www.russ-invest.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=290808

Apparently most of the investments attracted by Yanukovych’s “stabilnist” have nothing to do with the knowledge economy and democracy.

23 September, 2007 13:48  
Blogger jams o donnell said...

Thanks for carrying the story Peteris. Usmanov's ham fisted action against Craig Murray has just spread the story wider. The list of bloggers I have on The Poor Mouth is really diverse. It has representatives from across pretty much the whole of the British policial spectrum

23 September, 2007 18:25  
Blogger eeore said...

Surely it is possible to reasearch the claims?

Russia is surely not so undemocratic that all referances have been destroyed.

23 September, 2007 19:07  
Blogger Pēteris Cedriņš said...

I'd hope that the Guardian, the Times and other mainstream outlets with the resources to research Usmanov's stint in prison are trying to do so... but it's not clear to me whether those records are in Uzbekistan or Russia. Even those who believe that Russia is still democratic wouldn't say the same of Karimov's dictatorship.

Even if records exist, gaining access to archives in Russia isn't easy (I've some notes on a couple of unrelated incidents here). Men like Usmanov have quite a krysha or "roof," and it is really not too difficult for an oligarch to purchase part of the security services and have such records expunged... just as it's not too difficult to create such records if someone falls out of favor!

24 September, 2007 06:31  
Blogger Taras said...

I forgot to mention that, as a youngster, Yanukovych served jailtime for infliction of bodily harm and for what many believe was robbery.

When the story became public knowledge during the presidential campaign of 2004, he claimed to be clean. His “youthful rebellion” — as his well-paid American spin doctors now prefer to call it — was said to have been removed from the records in accordance with Soviet legal procedure due to being “expired”.

One can find such practices commonplace throughout the non-EU segment of the former Soviet Union.

24 September, 2007 11:43  
Blogger Pēteris Cedriņš said...

Thanks for your additions, Taras!

25 September, 2007 21:15  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mr. Usmanov looks a lot like Latvia's prime minister. Is that just a coincidence, do you think?

Juris Žagariņš

03 October, 2007 21:15  
Blogger Pēteris Cedriņš said...

Cūkmens ir cūkmens. Usmanovs karbonādi ēdīs?

04 October, 2007 09:34  
Blogger Pierre said...

Čau Pēteri!

It's time you posted another entry in your blog, I can't stomach looking at that photo anymore when I visit your blog.

Those can't be good carbs anyway. :-)

Pierre

05 October, 2007 16:34  
Blogger Pēteris Cedriņš said...

Desolé, Pierre! I have a few posts brewing in the back of my mind, but none have reached the keyboard yet. You can check out jollier venues like this one. I thought about writing a response, even posted a couple of lines... then I deleted them, realizing that I want to keep this blog more serious, or somewhat coherent, or less inelegant.

06 October, 2007 23:30  

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