Scenes from Slovakia: Protesting the Murder of Journalist Ján Kuciak

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The murder of Slovakian investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancee, Martina Kušnírová, both 27, have sparked protests since the killings on February 25. On Friday, an estimated 50,000 gathered at the Slovak National Uprising Square in Bratislava to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government and a thorough investigation of Kuciak’s death. With thousands more rallying in other cities, the demonstrations prompted the resignation of Slovakia’s interior minister.

Kuciak was investigating how Italy’s notorious ‘Ndrangheta, one of the world’s most powerful crime syndicates, had infiltrated his native Slovakia and was tied to powerful officials in the country. See the full series that Kuciak was working on, completed by colleagues at his outlet Aktuality.sk and by GIJN members Czech Center for Investigative Journalism (CCIJ), the Investigative Reporting Project Italy (IRPI), and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP).

Protestors demanding a thorough investigation of journalist Jan Kuciak’s murder in Bratislava. (Photos courtesy of Aktuality.sk.)