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Newlywed Journalist Still Not Allowed In
Russian authorities have once again refused Natalia Morar, a correspondent for the Moscow-based New Times magazine and a citizen of Moldova, entry into Russia. She married Russian citizen and fellow New Times staffer Ilya Barabanov on February 23, but that fact did not sway border officers at Domodedovo Airport yesterday morning. Captain of the Domodedovo border division Vladimir Tol explained that her marriage “changes nothing.”
Morar was turned away by border officers while returning to Moscow from Israel on December 16 last year. They explained that they were acting on “an order from the central apparatus of the FSB.” She flew to Chisinau, where the Russian ambassador explained that she was banned from the country under article 27, part 1, of the law “On the Procedure for Entering the Russian Federation and Leaving the Russian Federation,” which states that a foreigner can be denied entry “for purposes of ensuring defense readiness or state security, or public order, or protection of public health.” No official explanation was ever given.
Morar has studied and worked in Russia for seven years before that event. At New Times, her colleagues suggest that the move was a response to an article she wrote about Russian officials' transfers of money abroad through Discount and Raiffeisen Banks. Reporters without Borders commented Morar's situation “emphasizes that freedom of the press remains under threat in Russia.” Nonetheless, legal analysts say that the exclusion from the country is legal.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Feb. 28, 2008
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