| April 3rd 2004 ·
Prague Watchdog
Amnesty International: Situation worsens in Ingushetia Timur Aliyev, North Caucasus – The situation in Ingushetia has recently worsened, stated Kim Wiesener, Russia Campaign Researcher at Amnesty International, who returned from a week-long visit to Chechnya and Ingushetia. The evidence of this lies in the wave of kidnappings during the past 2-3 months, he said. In talking about the campaign aimed at making refugees return to Chechnya from camps in Ingushetia, Wiesener noted that the situation here hasn’t changed one bit – the refugees are still being pressured to leave by the authorities. In the Chechen Republic the number of human rights violations has remained the same, but he believes the balance has changed. Kadyrov violates human rights more than ever before. Although no recent statistics are available, it’s apparent that people fear his forces more than they do the federal troops. Amnesty International will be submitting a detailed report on human rights infringements in Chechnya and Ingushetia, Wiesener added.
eng.kavkaz.memo.ru Caucasian Knot 3/4/2004 According to information of the Internet media, 20 Ingush students who took part in the [March 29] protest rally against abductions of people by Russian special services and against the Russian helicopter attack on the village of Ordzhonikidzevskaya that left two people dead have been sent down by direct instructions from the head of Ingushetia, Murat Zyazikov. In his interview with the media, one of the students said, "20 students have been sent down. The rector didn't want to do it, but the instruction was received from the higher authority - from Zyazikov. Police and FSB (Federal Security Service) officers are working in the [Ingush State] University to reveal other participants in the meeting; searches have been conducted at the exit from the university..." Source: Ingushetia.ru Website
Chechen government asks Red Cross for help Vice Prime Minister of the Chechen Government Ziyad Sabsabi met with George Kunz, a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the Northern Caucasus, in Grozny on April 1. Ziyad Sabsabi asked the ICRC leadership to assist in the search for missing residents of the Chechen Republic, reported the press service of the Chechen Government. "According to our data, there are over 3 thousand MIAs in the republic," a press service official said to the Caucasian Knot correspondent. "George Kunz assured the republican leadership he would do his best to help settle the issue. At the same time, he drew Ziyad Sabsabi's attention to the fact that the destiny of Usman Saidaliev, the ICRC employee abducted in the Gudermes district of Chechnya in August 2003, remained unknown so far and asked to stir up actions to search for him," the official said. Author: Sultan Abubakarov Source: Own correspondent
3/4/2004 Passenger bus fired on in Grozny Early in the morning of April 1, Russian soldiers opened fired in the Leninsky district of Grozny on a passenger bus going from the Chechen capital to Argun. The incident reportedly took place in the area of Grozny's central market. Russian soldiers who were on at a near-by post started firing on the bus without any grounds. There were several people in the bus. Some of them fell victims to the desultory fire. The site of the incident was immediately sealed off by the police. Details of the tragedy are being ascertained. Source: Infromation Center of the Council of NGOs
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