Tomorrow is the third anniversary of my sister’s death. Three years since I picked up my phone to hear the trembling voice of Anna’s son. “Mum is killed,” he said. “I’m here, come if you can.”

That moment, although I couldn’t fathom it at the time, was not only the end of my sister’s life. It also marked the start of her new life, that which we bear in our memory of her.

Her children have a lingering fear that their brave mother will be forgotten. That must not be allowed to happen. Today, three years later, justice has not been done. We are waiting for a second trial, which hopefully will take place next year. A very small note of measured optimism is the news, received only today, of two new suspects in Anna’s case.

The bullets which pieced Anna’s body merely killed her physically. Her spirit endures. It endures in the lives of other brave women who continue the same struggle – in different countries, and under different circumstances. They offer help to those who otherwise remain unheard and forgotten, championing their cause in the media and bringing their cases to court, forcing the authorities to take heed.

During her lifetime, and after her death, the name of Anna Politkovskaya came to symbolise the fight for freedom worldwide. But Anna, my sister, was also an ordinary human being, one who loved her family, her children, her friends. Anna loved life; but her own was extinguished too soon.

We are all aware that there are other murders in Russia still awaiting a proper investigation. Over the past 9 years 16 journalists were murdered. As in my sister’s case no one has been convicted for these killings; no one has gone to prison. The latest, only a few months ago, on July 15th, was Natalia Estemirova, who worked closely with Anna in Chechnya. After Anna’s death she continued to pursue the same cause, bringing to light the abuses of human rights in Chechnya.

There are many more heroines like Anna among us. But we only have one prize a year to mark their relentless struggle and courage. This is why tonight we can celebrate only a few of these remarkable women.

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