"I am not speaking as a journalist or a person fighting for her rights, but as a mother of two children," Romanova said. "I am worried about their and my own security. A [company] order was issued yesterday that does not allow me to speak about what is going on in the television company. A black Audi is shadowing my car."
She said she did not want to suffer the same fate of Paul Klebnikov, the editor of the Russian version of Forbes magazine who was murdered in Moscow last year.
Romanova's concerns appear to have emerged after security guards prevented her from entering the station's studios for her nightly broadcasts on November 23. She subsequently started legal proceedings against the REN-TV management, which issued a written order blocking her entrance into the building, and asked the Public Chamber, a recently established body involving fellow journalists and other public figures, for assistance.
Romanova said that Sergei Mironov, the speaker of the Federation Council, parliament's upper house, supported her even though her shows had previously been critical of him and his political party. The presenter said she was also hoping for support from the government.
The anchor said she would continue to work for the channel, one the most liberal in the country, if the court upheld her suit, though she said she had received many offers since the scandal erupted.
"I am one of the pool and want to work here. I do not understand why I cannot work for the channel where I have worked for nearly eight years," she said.
Romanova said the management could have disciplined her or even fired her as a form of punishment, but they had no right to prevent her from honoring her contract by taking her off the air.
