We, members of the ‘Free Word Association’ – writers, journalists, cultural activists, and scientists – are extremely concerned about the threats aimed at our colleagues, the journalists of ‘Novaya Gazeta’, which published materials on mass detentions, tortures and extrajudicial reprisals of citizens in Chechnya. We believe that the threateningly aggressive reaction to journalistic work, made public on April 3 at a many- thousand gathering in the Central Mosque of Grozny, is unacceptable in a civilized society and should be evaluated in view of the Russian law. The lack of proper response from law enforcement services and the country’s leadership has entailed yet another threat, this time to journalists of the ‘Echo of Moscow’ radio station who stood up for their colleagues from ‘Novaya Gazeta’.