17 January 2003
2003 - The Year of Joint Actions against War in Chechnya
This was declared on Friday by Executive Director of International Helsinki
Federation Aaron Rhodes in Moscow at the meeting of human rights groups
from Russia, Poland, Norway, Kenya, Serbia, Bosnia, Albania and other countries.
Besides that many human rights organizations informed Moscow Office of Helsinki
group in writing on their desire to join the initiative.
According to Rhodes, in the post-soviet area and on the whole territory
under wardship of the OSCE, Chechnya is an area where people are treated
most inhumanly, and where human rights are violated most impudently than
anywhere.
Rhodes emphasized that situation in Chechnya should not be compared even
to the situation in Turkmenistan, which, thanks to Basha-Niyazov, has been
reputed for dictatorial regime with semi-fascist attitude to the nation.
In spite of this, notes Rhodes, foreign and Russian human rights groups
assess the situation in Chechnya as much more grave.
Rhodes spoke about the violations of elementary human rights on the part
of the Russian military and special services in Chechnya, unlawfulness of
so-called "referendum" supposed to be held in March, and finally noted that
Russian government remains deaf to such criticism, as Russian people are
not keen to protest against the tyranny of Russian authorities towards the
whole nation. Rhode's colleague, representative of the Moscow office of
Helsinki Group Tatyana Lokshina also reminded of the fate of Chechen refugees
in Ingushetia, who, in her words, are forced to return to Chechnya and live
there in inhumane conditions where they can be killed, or to live in private
sector that will allow the federal structures to wash their hands of it
and forget the existence of the Chechen refugees as well as their problems.
Head of Russian Union of Soldiers Mothers Committees Valentina Melnikova has noted
that human rights groups worldwide have to unite their efforts with regard
to Chechnya where the Kremlin continues its criminal and unlawful war against
the Chechen people. Melnikova said, the Kremlin had ceased financing the
structures engaged in search of missing Russian servicemen in Chechnya.
According to the data presented by the Soldiers Mothers Committee, above
2500 civilians have disappeared in Chechnya for the last three years. Besides
that it should be noted that those people disappeared after they had been
arrested by the Russian servicemen, and there are hundreds of eye-witness
how those future ghosts were taken away. Melnikova's colleagues added that
they spoke not only of the people whose bodies had not been found, but also
of the people whose relatives do not know anything about their future fate.
However, as it is known, there are
hundreds of the civilians in Chechnya whose bodies have been found later.
Speaking on the regime of Russia, Aaron Rhodes openly declared that Moscow
does not observe fundamental international rules of civilized behavior with
respect to Chechnya and former soviet republics as well.