CP: "Memorial" does not want to soil its hands with "referendum"

Usam Baysaev, representative of the Nazran office of human rights center "Memorial", said with certainty that human rights groups will on no account take part as observers in the forthcoming "plebiscite" fixed for 23 March. Baysaev points out that human rights activists are of the opinion that it is not proper time for this kind of actions, and they are only going to fix the violations in the course of preparation of the action, though, they do not abandon their principal task - the monitoring of human rights' observance in the republic.

According to Baysaev, several serious violations have been observed on the part of the pro-Moscow authorities in the course of preparation of the referendum, and its future results should be declared invalid. Baysaev, in particular, supposes that the preparation to the "all-Chechen plebiscite" is carried on in a form and manner contradicting with, at least, two documents, significant for Russia: President Putin's decree on Referendum, according to which the corresponding campaigning should begin not earlier than a month before the event, and recommendations of the PACE, according to which an absolutely indispensable condition for carrying out the referendum in Chechnya is safeguarding of free movement of the citizens and free exchange of opinions regarding all questions related with the referendum. In spite of this, says Baysaev, the Moscow-backed Chechen authorities started the campaign in December, i.e. almost two months earlier than it is allowed. "There is nothing to be said about the free movement of the citizens. "Russian TV announces about cutting down of the number of checkpoints in Chechnya, but the checkpoints are not so much removed as new ones built" - said the human rights activist. Baysaev also told about an incident which took place in Grozny not long ago - the head of pro-Moscow education committee of one of the districts of Grozny required of the secondary school teachers working in the outskirts of the capital to pay 50 roubles (from each) for the "referendum". When he was told that the teachers had not been paid their salaries for two months, he ordered to draw up a list of those teachers who refused to pay.

Besides that, Baysaev says that neither TV nor the press of pro-Moscow Chechen administration give any alternative point of view of the Chechen people with regard to advisability of carrying out the referendum. According to Baysaev, the discussion is conducted in the spirit of the soviet epoch, i.e. only those who support the referendum express their opinion, and discuss the insignificant details of the future Moscow-backed Chechen "constitution". In other words, a certain journalist thinks up a subject of the discussion and, like an inveterate chess player, plays on both sides of the chessboard. In addition to this, says Baysaev, the United Grouping of Russian forces is also intended to take part in the referendum. Baysaev is absolutely sure that there is no freedom of speech in Chechnya - the most significant condition for any plebiscite. And, as a striking demonstration of the above said, Baysaev cites the words of Akhad Kadyrov: 96 per cent of Chechnya's population "support us", and as to the rest of them, they are enemies and traitors, and they should be dealt with"…"It means that they have to deal with me too" - ironically says Baysaev. "Such is the freedom of speech in Chechnya…", - says he in conclusion.

T.Nemmirovich, SIA Chechenpress
March 7, 2003

http://www.chechenpress.info/english/news/03_2003/09/4.htm
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