| Right activists: Kadyrovtsy are Cechnya's
main problem Researchers from the Memorial human rights center and the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) on February 7 presented their findings concerning human rights violations in Chechnya last year. The IHF's Aleksandr Mnatsakanyan said that the human rights situation in the republic has changed significantly over the last year or even year and a half. "Even then you were hearing from various representatives of the federal troops in Chechnya that the activity of the militants had dropped significantly and that the main trouble (according to various estimates, 75 percent of the violations of the law) is caused by Ramzan Kadyrov's armed people," he said. According to Mnatsakanyan, the so-called kadyrovtsy, which he described as "armed formations whose status is very hazy," are officially part of a special regiment named after Ramzan Kadyrov's late father, Akhmad Kadyrov, and number 1,250 men. Unofficially, they number 2,500 and make up something resembling a band of Cossacks, he said, adding that several military and Interior Ministry officials had said that 86 people from among the kadyrovtsy are on Russia's federal wanted list. IHF North Caucasus researcher Tatyana Lokshina noted that while officials of the Southern Federal District announced that a new presidential bodyguard unit would be formed for Chechen President Alu Alkhanov, Ramzan Kadyrov immediately denied speculation that the Kadyrov regiment would be disbanded stating: "The presidential regiment will exist for as long as we are alive." Lokshina claimed that Kadyrov has been carrying out "special operations aimed at the removal of people in Chechen power agencies loyal to Alkhanov" under the guise of counter-insurgency operations. She said that the most recent such operation was carried out in the Vedeno district, where the residents of one village said that armed men in camouflage removed the local police chief and told twenty key district officials that if they did not resign within 24 hours, they would be accused of links with the rebels. All twenty resigned. A young woman who worked as a bookkeeper for the local police was given 48 hours to resign but did not do so; according to Lokshina, she subsequently disappeared and has not been seen since. According to Memorial, Kadyrov also forced the resignation of the mayor of Argun – a move that was not opposed either by President Alkhanov or the community in Argun. The kadyrovtsy have also extorted Chechen civilians who have received compensation for damage caused to their homes in the war. "At night people have stopped opening the doors of their homes even upon hearing cries for help, which undoubtedly marks a turning point in the level of mentality," IHF's Aleksandr Mnatsakanyan stated. Tatyana Lokshina said the local population in Chechnya is far more afraid of the kadyrovtsy than they are of the federal forces. "The fact is that the Russian soldiers and Russian Interior Ministry staff have been located in Chechnya for a very long time, and they've gotten used to them," she said. "The kadyrovtsy are much more dangerous for local residents in terms of persecuting entire families or kidnapping individual relatives. It's easier and more convenient for them to victimize a person. The federal troops simply don't have such complete information about the local residents." Chechens are willing to discuss abuses by the federal troops by not those of the kadryovtsy, which means that kidnappings are underreported, accounting for official reports that the number of kidnappings in the republic has dropped. According to Aleksandr Cherkasov of Memorial, 396 people were kidnapped in 2004, compared with 495 in 2003. While the general situation did not improve much, the number of people found dead with signs of violence and/or torture dropped from 52 in 2003 to 24 in 2004. Of the 396 kidnapped in 2004, 189 were freed – some of them after Ramzan Kadyrov intervened personally – 24 were found dead and 173 disappeared without a trace. In all cases, Cherkasov said, the kidnappers turned out to be members of Chechen "power structures," none of whom were prosecuted. In October of last year, Chechnya's human rights ombudsman, Lema Khasuev, reported 2,500 people had been kidnapped during the preceding four and a half years, while in December 2004, the Southern Federal District branch of the Prosecutor General's Office reported that 2,437 people had been kidnapped during that period, 347 of whom were subsequently freed. The Council of Europe last September put forward a figure of 2,300 disappearances, while a Chechen governmental working group puts the number at 2,800. Cherkasov concluded that the number of people kidnapped during the last five and a half years between 3,500 and 5,000. Oleg Orlov, who is chairman of Memorial's council, reported that 18 people were kidnapped in the republic in January of this year alone. "Out of this number, three people were freed; the fate of 14 remains unknown," he said. "Another person who was believed kidnapped is currently under investigation." Vladimir Kravchenko, the Chechen Republic's Prosecutor denied Memorial's figures concerning both disappearances over the last five years and in January, saying they "do not correspond to the data that the republic's law-enforcement organs have available," Itar- Tass reported on February 7. "Based on their data, in turns out that the number of disappearances in the republic is growing, whereas the situation is directly the opposite," Kravchenko said. "Compared with last year, the number of disappearances this year has decreased by 3.5 times." He said that 21 disappearances had been registered since the beginning of the year, but that 16 involved disappearances that took place last year, suggesting that people "are starting to trust the law-enforcement organs more" and thus reporting disappearances to the police more often. The real number of disappearances since the start of the year, Kravchenko said, is five, compared to 31 who disappeared during January 2004. Since 1999, he said, 2,540 people disappeared – 520 of whom were subsequently freed. The Jamestown Foundation 9 February 2005 - Volume VI, Issue 6 CHECHNYA WEEKLY: News and Analysis on the Crisis in Chechnya 8.2.2005 Abductions Continue RUSSIA, Moscow. Against the backdrop of conflict between Chechen police and subdivisions of the Security Service of Chechnya under the command of first Deputy Chairman of the Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, abductions continue. The main perpetrators are Chechen Security Service forces under the direction of Ramzan Kadyrov--so-called "Kadyrovites". This situation was discussed by participants at a press conference entitled "New Features of the Chechen conflict: Numbers and Details " participants included Oleg Orlov and Aleksandr Cherkasov from the Human Rights Center Memorial, and Tatiana Lokshina and Aleksandr Mnatsakanyan from the International Helsinki Federation. Memorial documented 396 cases of abductions on the territory of the Chechen Republic in 2004. 189 people were freed by their kidnappers. 24 bodies were found with the traces of tortures and signs of violent death. 173 people simply disappeared. In 2003, 495 people were abducted; 52 bodies were found; 285 people disappeared. The reduction of these numbers doesn’t indicate any real decrease in the number of abductions. Now they are carried out by Kadyrovites, who know the territory better than their colleagues in the federal forces, and people fear to report them. The numbers given concern only a third or fourth of the territory of Chechnya, the human rights activists noted. In many instances, the Chechen police know details of the abduction but can do nothing, the press conference participants noted. Translated by OM Kenney PRIMA-News [2005-02-07-Rus-06] PUBLIC AI Index: EUR 46/005/2005 4 February 2005 Fear for safety/torture/ "disappearance" RUSSIAN FEDERATION (Chechen Republic) There is still no news of Chechen human rights lawyer Makhmut Magomadov who was seized by armed men on 20 January in the Chechen capital, Grozny. Amnesty International is gravely concerned that he is at serious risk of being tortured, or killed. Makhmut Magomadov’s family have reportedly received conflicting official statements from the Staropromyslovskii district procuracy and the Staropromyslovskii district police in Grozny, alleging that Makhmut Magomadov had been released on 23 January. However, his family and colleagues have not seen him since he was abducted on 20 January and believe that the reports of his release are not credible. The recent human rights violations in the Chechen Republic were the subject of a declaration from the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly's Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, issued on 27 January. The declaration cited the case of Makhmut Magomadov and other human rights defenders working on Chechnya: "[The Committee] is particularly shocked about the targeting of human rights defenders by acts of repression, in particular the abduction on 20 January 2005 of Makhmut Magomadov, and the raid on the same day by FSB officers of the Nizhny Novgorod office of the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society." Amnesty International is concerned that Makhmut Magomadov may have been singled out because of his persistent and effective work in defence of human rights, in particular his work preparing cases for submission to the European Court of Human Rights that deal with human rights violations committed in the course of the Chechen conflict. A Russian NGO, the International Protection Centre, had submitted a number of cases on which Makhmut Magomadov had collaborated, most recently in late December 2004. Makhmut Magomadov had been heavily involved in preparing the documents for these cases, in particular in ensuring that applicants had exhausted all the avenues available to them to obtain justice in Russia, which they must do before they can apply to the European Court. The human rights organisation that Makhmut Magomadov works for, the Chechen Committee for National Salvation, have received nearly 100 copies of appeals sent by UA network members from around the world. They are using the appeals to increase publicity for the case. They are very grateful for the actions of the UA network, and thank them for the huge effort they have made. Many thanks to all who took action on this case. If possible, please send a final round of appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in Russian or your own language: - expressing concern for the safety of human rights lawyer Makhmut Magomadov, who was abducted by armed men in camouflage on 20 January, in the Staropromyslovskii district of Grozny; - expressing concern at allegations that he was abducted by the security forces, and singled out because of his work in defence of human rights; - calling for a full, thorough and independent inquiry into allegations that the men who abducted him were members of the security forces under the command of First Deputy Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov; - if he is in the custody of the security forces, urging the authorities to ensure that he is released immediately and unconditionally; - calling on the authorities to end the persecution of human rights defenders and activists working in the North Caucasus. APPEALS TO: (Fax machines may be switched off outside office hours – GMT+3) President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN g. Moskva, Kreml Russian Federation Fax: + 7 095 206 85 10 + 7 095 206 51 73 + 7 095 230 24 08 Email: president@gov.ru Salutation: Dear President Putin Procurator General of the Russian Federation Vladimir USTINOV General Procuracy of the Russian Federation Ul. B. Dimitrovka 15a 103793 Moscow K-31 Russian Federation Fax: + 7 095 292 8848 (if someone answers say "fax please") Salutation: Dear Procurator General Procurator of the Chechen Republic Vladimir Pavlovich Kravchenko Procuracy of the Chechen Republic Ul. Garazhnaya 9 b Grozny, Chechen Republic Russian Federation Fax: + 7 8712 22 31 43 (if someone answers say "fax please") + 7 095 777 92 26 Salutation: Dear Procurator COPIES TO: Vladimir Lukin, Ombudsman of the Russian Federation Fax: +7 095 207 76 30 Ella Pamfilova, Chair of the Human Rights Commission of the Russian Federation Fax: +7 095 206 48 55 Chechen Committee of National Salvation Email: chkns@mail.ru PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY******** http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGEUR460052005?open&of=ENG-RUS eng.kavkaz.memo.ru Caucasian Knot 7/2/2005 Assault victims stage rally People living at 6th Magistralnaya Street in Makhachkala whose houses were damaged in the 15 January assault against rebels have staged a rally in the Dagestani capital today. About 20 people went into the street in spite of the bad weather demanding that the assault damage compensation be paid out to them. The tenants have not received material aid they were promised after the assault. They hoped that representatives of the authorities would communicate with them today, but nobody came to see the rally participants. The hotel allotted to the victims for a time is not heated, the people say. They urge the authorities of Dagestan and Makhachkala to give them money at least for the first time. A few protesters were allowed in the building of the Dagestani State Council after a while. There, a functionary promised the people that "everything will be settled" and said that they were ready to help with provisions. However the protesters did not succeed in finding out the post held by the man who promised to help them. The operation to destroy rebels from the Dzhennet group, who occupied a private house, was conducted on the outskirts of Makhachkala on January 15. 16 houses were damaged during the operation, people being unable to live in them so far. The tenants were promised material aid and the assault damage compensation. Author: Aida Mirmaksumova, CK correspondent 8.02.2005 Human rights reports ignored Taking into account the fact how the data on the missing and the abducted in Chechnya varies, it seems no one has accurate statistics in this respect. Let’s leave human rights groups alone. According to the Kremlin, all of them are “engaged.” Below is what “officials” say. “President” Alu Alkhanov: some 1,000 people were abducted in 2000 (note, he puts it — not missing, but abducted!). in 2001 – 750 people, in 2003 – 362 people, and last year – “only” 168 “cases” were registered, which is – as Alkhanov proudly puts it – “threefold less than in 2003.” Ruslan Alkhanov, “the head of the Chechen MVD”: 404 people disappeared in 2003, 168 – in 2004. As we see, their data varies, but there is a clear “downward” tendency. The tendency was clear until Rudnik Dudayev, “the secretary of the Council for Economic and Public Security,” took the floor. According to him, 2004 – which, according to “the president” and “the MVD chief,” was crucial in the struggle against abductions – wasn’t so peaceful at all. Rudnik Dudayev pinpointed at “the highest upsurge of crime” – about 500 people had been abducted, which is “1.5fold higher than in 2003,” adding also that so far no information about almost all the abductees had been received. Earlier, Vladimir Lukin, the Russian ombudsman told the Interfax news agency that in 2004 about 1,700 people had been abducted in Chechnya and that 50 criminal cases were opened into the abductions. 1,700 crimes – and ONLY 50 criminal cases! By the way, the Russian general prosecutor’s office provided the commissioner of the Council of Europe, during his visit to Russia, with the data on 1,749 criminal cases on the abduction of 2,300 people. As we have already reported, the statistics of human rights groups varies greatly from “official figures.” Besides, human rights groups emphasize that they monitor only a part of Chechnya’s territory – where they still can work. And if “official structures” keep a modest silence on who is behind the abductions, human rights groups openly say that about 75% of these crimes are on the conscience (if there is conscience) of Ramzan Kadyrov’s gangs. One of the first decrees signed by “president” Alkhanov was a strict ban on “masked faces” during detentions and “cleaning up operations.” In fact, Alkhanov even recommended the puppet police “shooting masked people on the spot.” But it seems policemen (who are also being often abducted) are in no hurry to shoot down their masked colleagues. Because everybody in Chechnya knows who arrive on APCs with dirtied numbers and vehicles without number plates and who wear masks. Indeed, even if it is known who carried out this or that “operation,” relatives have no guarantee that “the detainee” will not become “the missing” – police is likely to hand out a paper saying that “the detainee was interrogated and released” and a dozen witnesses (policemen) will say under oath they “personally saw him walking away.” Representatives of the puppet structures in Chechnya offer an original version “explaining the disturbing statistics on the missing” – very often people simply do not warn their relatives if they are going somewhere, and later, being concerned, they lament about an abduction. Or a young boy joins “the rebel ranks” and he is considered “missing” to make an alibi for him. Of course, no concrete examples were given, but it sounds good! With all there false “concerns about the problem” it seems “the republican leadership” do not want to hear the stories of those who managed to break free on where they were kept, who and how tortured them, how much money their relatives had to pay to make the release a reality. Human rights groups collect such true stories, but their reports are being dully ignored. The Chechen Times |