CNN.com - NTV staff ask Putin for help

Putin says he will not intervene in the commercial dispute

MOSCOW, Russia -- Journalists at NTV television station have asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to intervene in its ownership struggle.

NTV's staff are battling what they see as a state-orchestrated takeover attempt to end their independence.

The station, the only national network outside the Kremlin's control, has often been critical of Putin.

Earlier this month, the state-dominated gas giant Gazprom ousted NTV's founder and key aides -- a move branded illegal by staff.

REFERENCE NTV: Russian media battle

"We think that in such a situation it is your duty, in accordance with the Russian constitution, to intervene and ensure a legal solution to the conflict," said an open letter signed by 129 NTV journalists and published on the channel's Web site.

"We are appealing to you as the head of the government and as the guarantor of the constitution of the Russian federation, the rights and freedoms of people and citizens."

The Kremlin declined to comment on the letter, but Putin, while pledging himself to free speech, said he could not intervene in a purely commercial dispute that a court should resolve.

Moscow's Arbitration Court set a May 10 date to hear a legal challenge to the contested shareholder meeting. A dispute over management changes ordered by Gazprom is to be debated a week later.

Thousands of people have demonstrated against the takeover of NTV in the biggest street protests of Putin's presidency.

NTV journalists and liberals have said the station's fate is a key test of press freedom under Putin, a former KGB spy and domestic intelligence service chief.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder discussed the NTV situation with Putin at their summit meeting in St Petersburg on Tuesday, but made clear the issue was not at the top of the agenda.

In the open letter, the NTV journalists wrote that they had made a serious contribution to the assertion of free speech in Russia, "and now our independence is under threat."

The letter added that Putin should see that "state-controlled Gazprom stop its aggressive actions against NTV during this period."

After presenting a united front at the start of the battle, defections from the channel have slowly been rising. Some 22 journalists have left, including some of the more high-profile faces.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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