STRASBOURG, October 5 (RIA Novosti) - A group of parliamentarians from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe proposed on Friday holding an international investigation into the murder of Russian journalist, Anna Politkovskaya.

Politkovskaya, known for her criticism of the Kremlin's policy in Chechnya, was gunned down in an apparent contract killing in an elevator in her apartment building on October 7, 2006 in Moscow. She was 48.

A group of 34 PACE parliamentarians from Bulgaria, Germany, Norway, Romania, Moldova, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Georgia, Albania, Serbia and Spain signed a statement calling on Moscow not to interfere in the investigation.

The parliamentarians also called on the countries of the Council of Europe to acknowledge the critical situation regarding independent journalists in Russia. According to data from the international rights organization Reporters Without Borders, 21 journalists have been murdered in Russia since 2000.

The Reporters Without Borders secretary general said Friday that the organization is concerned over the lack of clarity in the Russian investigation into Politkovskaya's murder.

"The investigation is not being conducted seriously. Everything is vague and contradictive. About 11 suspects have been held and half of them have been released," Robert Menard said, speaking nearly a year after the Russian journalist's death.

Menard demanded that more light be cast on the investigation, and lamented that the identity of the person who ordered the murder has not yet been established.