Chechens vent anger at attack on village

March 12, 2003

VLADIKAVKAZ - About 500 people held a protest rally against the Russian military on the outskirts of the Chechen capital Grozny Wednesday, after two Russian armored personnel carriers opened fire in their village, killing two Chechen policemen, an official said.

The rally strongly underlined the wide animosity that Chechens still hold for Russian authorities even as the Kremlin insists life is returning to normal and seeks referendum approval of a proposed Chechen constitution.

The Russian APCs entered Staraya Sunzha on Sunday night and opened fire after a local patrol made up of residents and police tried to stop them, an official in the Moscow- backed Chechen administration said. Two police were killed before the APCs retreated, the official said on condition of anonymity.

Residents began patrolling Staraya Sunzha after three villagers disappeared during a Russian security sweep last month. During Wednesday's protest, they threatened to boycott an upcoming referendum on a Moscow-backed constitution for Chechnya, unless the military halts its "arbitrary" rule.

The security sweeps have been widely condemned by human rights groups, who say they are rife with abuses by Russian troops, including arbitrary detentions, rapes, and killings. Over the past 24 hours, at least 200 people were detained in sweeps in Grozny and six other districts of Chechnya, the official said.

In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin called for prosecutors to be present at all "special operations" in Chechnya - as Russian officials refer to the security sweeps.

"Not a single measure within the framework of the counter-terrorist operation in Chechnya should be taken without a prosecutor," Putin said in a speech to Russian law enforcement officials Wednesday, the Interfax news agency reported.

The Kremlin has been trying to burnish its image in Chechnya - including withdrawing a small contingent of troops - ahead of a March 23 referendum on a new Moscow-backed constitution for Chechnya.

Russian officials say the referendum, which would put Chechnya firmly under Russian federal control, will provide a legal framework for society after years of war and pave the way to future parliamentary and presidential elections in the republic. Critics say the constitution cannot replace negotiations with Chechen rebels.

At least two Russian servicemen were killed and 14 wounded in rebel attacks and clashes over the past 24 hours, the official in the Moscow-backed administration said. A Chechen policeman was also killed when his unit came under fire in Grozny, and Russian artillery shelled suspected rebel positions across Chechnya.

The Associated Press