| Human rights violations in the Chechen
Republic: the CM’s responsibility vis-ŕ-vis the Assembly’s concerns [15/12/05] PACE's Committee on Legal Affairs adopted, at its meeting in Paris on 13 December, a draft resolution and a draft recommendation prepared by Rudolf Bindig (Germany, SOC) that expresses deep concern that "a fair number of Governments, Member States, and the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe have failed to address the ongoing serious human rights violations in a regular, serious and intensive manner, despite the fact that such violations still occur on a massive scale in the Chechen Republic and in somes cases, neighbouring regions, in a climate of impunity." These draft texts are on the order of business of PACE's next plenary session (23-27 January 2005). Human Rights violations in the Chechen Republic: the Committee of Ministers’ responsibility vis-ŕ-vis the Assembly’s concerns Draft version Report Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights Rapporteur: Mr Rudolf Bindig, Germany, Socialist Group I. Draft resolution 1. The Assembly stresses that the protection of human rights is the core task of all Council of Europe bodies and recalls its previous resolutions 1323(2003) and 1403(2004) and recommendations 1600(2003) and 1679(2004) on the human rights situation in the Chechen Republic. 2. The Assembly is deeply concerned that a fair number of Governments, Member States, and the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe have failed to address the ongoing serious human rights violations in a regular, serious and intensive manner, despite the fact that such violations still occur on a massive scale in the Chechen Republic and in somes cases, neighbouring regions, in a climate of impunity. 3. The Assembly reiterates its unambiguous condemnation of all acts of terrorism and expresses its understanding of the difficulties the Russian Federation faces in combating terrorism. 4. The Assembly welcomes the fact that a number of criminal cases were opened and some perpetrators were taken to court and encourages the Public Prosecutor’s office to intensify its efforts. Nevertheless, the Assembly notes the lack of substantial progress of the Prosecutor General’s Office in elucidating numerous human rights violations brought to his attention in its previous reports on the human rights situation in the Chechen Republic. Impunity fosters more crime. 5. Both federal and regional law enforcement authorities must continue to investigate numerous specific and well-documented allegations of enforced disappearances, murder and torture brought to the attention of international public opinion and of the Assembly in recent months by non-governmental human rights organisations. 6. Emphasis must be placed on crimes against human rights defenders, lawyers, prosecutors, judges, forensic doctors and other law enforcement officials and against applicants to the European Court of Human Rights and their family members. It is intolerable that reprisals against applicants to the Strasbourg Court take place and remain unpunished. 7. The Assembly urges the Russian delegation to the Assembly to request the setting-up, within the Duma, of a committee of inquiry to investigate the failure of law enforcement structures to hold responsible perpetrators of serious human rights violations such as documented by the Assembly. 8. The Assembly fears that the excessively harsh manner in which the security forces act in the region in no way contributes to restoring law and order in the region. On the contrary, it produces more desperation, violence and thus instability. 9. Recalling the Council of Europe’s humanitarian and legal principles, the Assembly strongly condemns human rights violations in the fight against terrorism, which have now for well over a decade proven not only to be unlawful, but also totally ineffective. 10. It stresses that in order to prevent future serious human rights violations, all law inforcement agencies active in the Chechen Republic should receive additional orders from the highest authorities to respect basic human rights in the course of the operations. This is particularly true for certain Chechen security forces whose legal status is still unclear. 11. Both the democratic process and the fight against impunity must benefit from the work of strong and independent non-governmental human rights organisations. The Assembly welcomes the recent information according to which the Russian legislature has expressed its intention to ensure the compatibility of the draft law on the legal status of non-governmental organisations with the standards of the Council of Europe. Nevertheless, the Assembly is concerned about reports on administrative and judicial harassment of some non-governmental organisations. 12. In view of the seriousness of the human rights violations in the Chechen Republic, the Assembly is most dissatisfied with the replies of the Committee of Ministers to its recommendations. It regrets in particular that: 12.1. the Committee of Minister’s monitoring of the human rights situation in the Chechen Republic, launched by the Secretary General in June 2000, is now de facto at a standstill since the spring of 2004, despite repeated calls by the Assembly to intensify monitoring efforts. 12.2. the Committee of Ministers did not take any “specific action” by virtue of the 1994 Declaration on compliance with commitments, after the Assembly had formally seized it in Recommendation 1600 (2003). Such an omission is unacceptable, especially as the Assembly had used for the first time the mechanism the Committee of Ministers had itself set up for this purpose. 13. The Assembly fears that the lack of effective reaction by the Council’s executive body in the face of the most serious human rights issue in any of the Council of Europe’s member states undermines the credibility of the organisation. II. Draft Recommendation 1. The Assembly stresses that the protection of human rights is the core task of all Council of Europe bodies and recalls resolution … (2006) and its previous recommendations 1600(2003) and 1679(2004) on the human rights situation in Chechnya, regretting that serious human rights violations still occur on a massive scale in the Chechen Republic and, in some cases, in neighbouring regions of the Northern Caucasus. 2. It urges the Committee of Ministers to confront its responsibilities in the face of one of the most serious human rights issues in any of the Council of Europe’s member states, as the lack of effective reaction by the Council’s executive body has the capacity to seriously threaten the credibility of the whole organisation. 3. The Assembly urges the Committee of Ministers to discuss ways and means to prevent new human rights violations and to overcome the climate of impunity in the Chechen Republic, and to address appropriate recommendations to the Russian Government. 4. It commends the Committee of Ministers for its positive response to the proposal on the desirability of a Council of Europe field presence in the region. But it is dissatisfied with the Committee of Ministers’ failure to obtain the full investigation of the bomb explosion that effectively put to an end the continued presence of the Council of Europe in the Chechen Republic. 5. In view of the seriousness of the situation, the Assembly 5.1. recommends relaunching the Committee of Ministers’ monitoring of the human rights situation in the Chechen Republic; 5.2. invites the Committee of Ministers again to take “specific action” by virtue of the 1994 Declaration on compliance with commitments, after Recommendation 1600 (2003), which was the first time that the Assembly had used this specific Committee of Ministers monitoring mechanism; 5.3. reiterates its call to the Committee of Ministers to discuss the necessary consequences of the public statements of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) on insufficient cooperation of the Russian Federation with this important body. 6. In order to be able to take the required strong action, it invites the Committee of Ministers to make use of all the possibilities provided by the Statute of the Council of Europe to reach decisions, including votes by a two-thirds majority. Source: European Commission - Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) Date: 13 Dec 2005 European Commission provides €8 million for victims of crises in Northern and Southern Caucasus The European Commission has adopted two new humanitarian aid decisions totalling €8 million for victims of the ongoing crises in Chechnya (€6 million) and Georgia (€2 million). The first aid package will complement the previous decision for victims of the conflict in Chechnya. The recipients will include internally displaced persons (IDPs) and vulnerable groups in Chechnya as well as IDPs in Ingushetia and Dagestan. The second aid package will support the most vulnerable people in Western Georgia, in particular those affected by the unresolved conflict between Abkhazia and Georgia. Funds are being allocated via the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) under the responsibility of Commissioner Louis Michel and will be channelled through international agencies operating in the region. Commissioner Michel said: "The humanitarian face of the Chechen conflict must not be forgotten. Military and security operations have caused massive destruction and displacement. One third of the Chechen civilian population is still in need of external humanitarian assistance. With this new financial decision, we will bring our total assistance to Northern Caucasus for 2005 to € 26,3 million. This is our fifth biggest humanitarian operation worldwide". Six years into the second conflict, humanitarian needs remain acute in the Northern Caucasus. Out of a population of around 800,000, some 200,000 people are estimated to be displaced within Chechnya, many of whom returned from Ingushetia last year after the closure of tent camps there. Living conditions throughout Chechnya, particularly in Grozny, are extremely difficult. Outside Chechnya, over 26,000 people in Ingushetia and some 10,000 in Dagestan are still displaced, most of them in dire conditions. Insecurity continues to prevail, with military operations still going on, especially in Southern Chechnya, and regular militant attacks on federal forces and local militia. The civilian population continues to suffer harshly in a conflict characterised by numerous human rights violations. In Chechnya, Ingushetia and Dagestan, this new €6 million decision finances the distribution of basic and supplementary food for the most vulnerable people, supports primary education and vocational training as well as psychological assistance for people, especially children, affected by war-related trauma. It also provides mine-risk education. In addition, the funding will cover the improvement of water and sanitation facilities in Chechnya and Ingushetia, and the basic rehabilitation of private houses in Chechnya. Income-generating activities will also be developed for vulnerable households in Chechnya. The delivery of aid will depend on access and security conditions, which remain very difficult in the region. All humanitarian aid organisations continue to work on a remote-control basis in Chechnya, without a permanent expatriate presence. Since the beginning of the current conflict in autumn 1999, The Commisison through ECHO has allocated over €170 million to the crisis, making the EU the largest donor in the region. The second decision of €2 million will target victims of the conflict between Abkhazia and Georgia. Despite a UN-brokered agreement in 1994 to end the fighting, hundreds of thousands of people are still displaced and live in dire conditions in Abkhazia and the rest of Western Georgia. With the departure of ethnic Georgians, Abkhazia's population has plummeted from pre-war estimates of 500,000 to now only 100,000 to 150,000 residents, 15,000 of whom are considered destitute. An estimated 200,000 Georgians who left Abkhazia remain displaced within Georgia, largely in the Western region. This new decision will concentrate on Western Georgia, including Abkhazia. It will provide basic food to 35,000 of the poorest people and fund food and income generating projects for some 5,000 vulnerable people. A mother-and-child healthcare project will focus on improving women's access to healthcare. The decision will also fund basic rehabilitation of derelict collective centres for IDPs and the rehabilitation of private houses for Georgian returnees in Abkhazia. In Georgia, the Commission's humanitarian aid has provided over €98 million since 1993. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/echo/field/russia/index_en.htm http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/DPAS-6K2FJZ?OpenDocument Fewer kidnappings in Chechnya MOSCOW, December 13, Itar-Tass, The number of kidnappings in Chechnya is gradually reducing, Vladimir Lukin, the Russian Federation's human rights commissioner, said in Echo of Moscow radio live broadcast on Tuesday. ``Fewer people disappeared of late, and there is no such brazenness as two or three years ago,'' Lukin said. He urged the appropriate structures to continue the painstaking work to ``root out this evil.'' Lukin, specifically, believes, the elected Chechen parliament should give special attention to the problem. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday personally congratulated deputies with the beginning of the work of parliament of the Chechen Republic and called on the elected representatives of the people ``to engage in active work in the interests of the people'', to press for the improvement of the activity of state bodies and the law enforcement system, to rule out violations of law, particularly such grave violations as kidnappings. Alu Alkhanov, the head of the republic, addressing the meeting of chiefs of law enforcement bodies, set the task of stepping up operational work and the search for missing persons. He said, ``Ever more often people kidnapped are not linked to the bandit underground. Those who operate successful businesses or hold posts in the official bodies are abducted.'' ``This means that the pursuit of gain is ever more apparent, and the kidnappings aim for ransom,'' he believes. Pointing to the decrease in the number of kidnappings in the republic, Alkhanov, nevertheless, regards the main task of law enforcement bodies to eradicate this kind of crime. The number of kidnappings in the territory of Chechnya from the beginning of this year dropped by half as compared with the data for the same period last year. Kommersant Dec. 15, 2005 Russia Lost By All Counts… // …To Chechen Ilyas Timishev European Court for Human Rights in Strasbourg announced his decision for the case Ilyas Timishev versus Russia. Russia will pay €6,000 because a traffic police inspector did not let Timeshev go to Nalchik and his children were not allowed to go to school. Ilyas Timishev, 55, escaped Chechnya in 1996 because of war. Together with his relatives he settled in Nalchik. On June 19, 1999, he was driving back from Nazran to Nalchik. In the village Urukh at the administrative border between Ingushetia and Kabardino-Balkaria, his car was stopped by a traffic policeman. He said that he has instruction from the Interior Ministry of Kabardino-Balkaria not to let any Chechens into the republic. He made Timishev turn around and leave. In February 2000, Timishev wrote a complaint to the General Prosecution about the incident. In the response letter, the prosecutors admitted that the head of Kabardino-Balkarian Interior Ministry broke Article 27 of the Russian Constitution about freedom of movement when he issued his order. The General Prosecution made the republic’s Interior Ministry to recognize the violation of the law. However, people at the Interior Ministry were saying that nobody was limiting freedom of movement for Chechens. In their explanation, Timishev was trying to cross a checkpoint without standing in line. However, these problems were not the last for Timishev’s family. On Sept. 1 of the same year, his children were not let into the school in Nalchik because they did not have official registration in Kabardino-Balkaria. Neither did they have documents confirming their refugee status. Timishev had to give up his migration card in order to get compensation for lost property during the course of the Chechen war. The children finally got to school only because of the good heartedness of the school principal who let them study unofficially with one condition—that the city Department of Education of Nalchik would not find out about it. Thus she was jeopardizing her career. After investigating the case, the European Court ruled that prohibition for entrance into Kabardino-Balkaria by high-ranking official of the republic’s Interior Ministry is a violation of Article 2 of Protocol No. 4 of the European Convention for Human Rights, which guarantees freedom of movement. Moreover, the court pointed out that because the prohibition was established exclusively for ethnic Chechens that was a violation of Article 14 of the European Convention which prohibits discrimination for ethnic grounds. Also, the court recognized that Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 of the European Convention, which guarantees the right of education, was violated in the case of Timishev’s children. The court ordered Russia to pay to the plaintiff 5,950 euros. by Maxim Chernigovsky Russian Article as of Dec. 15, 2005 http://www.kommersant.com/page.asp?id=635552 FROM THE CONFLICT ZONE BULLETIN OF HUMAN RIGHTS CENTER “MEMORIAL” SEPTEMBER 2004 (the issue prepared by HRC “Memorial” in Nazran) A Protest Demonstration at the Border of North Ossetia and Ingushetia On December 13 at around 10 a.m. at the administrative border of Ingushetia and North Ossetia Ingush forced migrants who fled the Ingush-Osetian conflict of 1992 organized a demonstration of protest. The demonstrators gathered at the territory adjacent to IDP camp “Majski”, near the village of Majski. They protested against the delays in resolving the issue of their return to their native settlements in North Osetia and discrimination of the Ingush minority in the Republic North Osetia-Alania. The protesters held slogans “We demand equal Constitutional rights to all citizens of the Russian Federation”, “Creation of ghettos for Ingush is the shame of Republic North Osetia-Alania”, “President Putin, enforce the law on Rehabilitation of the Repressed Peoples”, “SOS!” “The Authorities of Russia! Do not divide peoples into sons and step-sons” etc. The immediate impetus for the demonstration was given by the demand issued by the authorities of Prigorodny District of North Ossetia for IDPs to leave the territory of the “Majski” camp within a week. According to the head of department for legal affairs of the administration of Prigorodny district M.Tedeeva “Majski” had no “legal status” and its existence “contradicts the legitimate interests of the citizens of Majski village”. The demonstration was visited by representatives of the Republics of Ingushetia and North Osetia and the deputy Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Southern Federal Okrug Andrej Yarin. Yarin promised the demonstrators that the camp will not be dismantled during the winter colds but after March 1 2006 the migration services will provide IDPs with slots of land at the administrative border of Ingushetia and North Osetia. The forced migrants from the so-called “problematic settlements” of North Osetia closed for the return of Ingush, will be resettled to these slots. The residents of “Majski” consider that Yarin endorsed the position of North Osetian authorities, who ignore the rights and interests of the Ingush forced migrants. IDP camp Majski was founded by Ruslan Aushev, then incumbent President of the Republic Ingushetia, in the proximity of village Majski in 1994. Like other places of compact settlements of Ingush IDPs from North Osetia, the town has no official status of a “temporary residence center”. 1235 people live in the camp in wagons, without any assistance from the state. In their native villages in North Ossetia these people have flats and houses, but their return to the places of permanent residence, according to the authorities of Republic North Osetia – Alania, is impossible due to resistance of their former Ossetian neighbors. 15.12.2005 __________________________________________ Joachim Frank, Project Coordinator International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights Wickenburggasse 14/7 A-1080 Vienna Tel. +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 22 Fax: +43-1-408 88 22 ext. 50 Web: http://www.ihf-hr.org ______________________________________ RCIA: reports Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 916 One more resident of Grozny has been abducted On 9 December 2005 a resident of Staropromyslovsky district of Grzony Shamilyov Khamzat Salavdievich (born 1983) was snatched from his own house situated in Yaltinskaya Street by a group of armed unidentified people. The abducted man's whereabouts have not been established. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 915 Destiny of abducted residents of Grozny remain unknown As of 14 December 2005, it has been five days since two brothers, Khasan (born 1978) and Khusein (born 1982) Antazovs, were abducted in Grozny. They lived at the address 178 Entusiasty Street. According to their relatives, on 9 December unidentified people in camouflage moving around in two UAZ vehicles without any state license plates burst into the Antazovs' house and drove off three brothers, Amin, Khasan and Khusein, under gunpoint. Some time later Amin Antazov was freed by the abductors in Zavodskoy district of Grozny. The whereabouts and destinies of his two brothers remain unknown. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 914 The Chechen Parliament made a decision to rename Grozny after the past Kadyrov On 14 December 2005 the People's Assembly of the parliament of the Chechen Republic made a decision to rename the Chechen capital Grozny to the city of Akhmad-Kala (it means “Akhmad's city”). The new name of the city is meant to immortalize the memory of Akhmad Kadyrov, the Moscow-backed President of the Chechen Republic who was assassinated on 9 May 2004. The parliamentarians have to apply to the government of the Russian Federation for the approval of their decision. The decision to name the Chechen capital after Akhmad Kadyrov has become the first bill introduced by the new representative body of the Chechen Republic. Grozny was established in 1818 as the fortress of Groznaya by order of General Aleksey Ermolov. By 1870 the fortress had lost its strategic significance and received a status of the town of Grozny of Terskaya Region. In 1997, in the period of “the deferred status” that meant independence of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria de-facto, the city was called Jokhar-Kala after the past first president of the ChRI Jokhar Dudaev. Since the Russian federal forces established their control over the city in 2000, the Russian authorities have never used this name and the city became Grozny again. People in Chechnya often call Grozny Solzha-Kala which means “the city on the Sunzha”. This name is often used by several local mass media venues, including the regional news program GTRK in the Chechen language. (From our correspondent) Ingushetia Report # 913 Armed clash at the customs checkpoint in the village of Aki-Yurt On 9 December 2005 unidentified people moving around in 99th model “Zhiguli” car opened fire at the customs checkpoint situated in the village of Aki-Yurt of Ingushetia's Malgobek district. The assaulters opened fire after the military manning the checkpoint stopped the car and demanded from the people in the car to show their documents. As a result of the assault, nine customs officers were wounded. The assaulters disappeared in the direction of the village of Goragorsky of the Chechen Nadterechnyy district. As of the present moment, all the wounded people are being treated in the central hospital of the republic (Nasran). (From our correspondent) Ingushetia Report # 912 A 9-storeyed apartment house is being built in Nasran As of 13 December 2005, a 90-apartment 9-storeyed house is being built in Ingushetia's Nazran town. The erection of the apartment house has been financed from the federal program “Accommodation”. Some 150 million rubles have been allocated to build the house from the federal budget. The authorities of the republic promise to complete the works by the end of 2007. (From our correspondent) Ingushetia Report # 911 Policeman's house has been assaulted On 12 December 2005 a group of unidentified people assaulted the household belonging to the police captain Jambulat Bestoev in Ingushetia's town of Nasran. Bestoev is a serviceman with Nasran town police office. Several grenades exploded in his yard. Bestoev's household was slightly damaged: windowpanes were smashed and the roofing was damaged too. Fortunately, none of the members of the Bestoevs was at home at that time. The attack at Jambulat Bestoev's house isn't a single case. As we reported before, households belonging to other servicemen of this police office have been subjected to numerous assaults before (see O.R. from 07.11.2005 and from 30.11.2005). (From our correspondent) Shelkovskoy district. Chechen Republic Report # 906 Serviceman of the Anti-Terror Center shot dead two militiamen in a quarrel On 9 December 2005 a resident of Shelkovskaya village (19 Kalinin Str., ap. 2) Ismailov Amurdi (born 1973), a serviceman of the Anti-Terror Center, fell out with two militiamen, militia sergeant Gayerbekov Askhab Khusainovich (born 1981) from the settlement of Staroschedrinskaya of the Chechen Shelkovskoy district and Nudiev Usman Umatkhadjievich (born 1981), a commander of the patrol unit of Shelkovskoy district militia office. The militiamen were manning checkpoint #164 when the quarrel started and Gayrerbekov opened fire at them. Both men died in the district hospital. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 905 Schoolgirl disappeared in Grozny On 8 December 2005 Adueva Madina Ayndinovna (born 1989) disappeared without any traces left after she left home (2 Fasadnaya Str., ap.2) and went to school #50 in Zavodskoy district of Grozny. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 904 Unidentified people in camouflage shot dead a resident of Grozny On 9 December 2005 some ten unidentified armed people in camouflage and masks burst into the flat 6 in apartment house #4 in Yaltinskaya Street and a murdered a man there. Some neighbors called the police and after the police examined the scene of the crime and found documents on the corpse identifying the murdered man as El'murzaev Said-Akhmet Saidrakhmanovich (born 1981), a native of Urus-Martan district center. The man was registered as a resident of the village of Staryy Achkhoy where he lived in Vostochanya Street. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 903 A male corpse with signs of being undermined has been discovered in the center of Grozny On 9 December 2005 a male corpse bearing numerous signs of splinter wounds caused by an explosion of unidentifiable device. The corpse was found at the junction of Tatarskaya and Kommunisticheskaya Streets. There were no documents on the corpse. The man was in his 30s. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 902 Rudnik Dudaev's corpse is taken to forensic medicine examination to Vladikavkaz On 12 December 2005 the corpse of the chairperson of the Security Council of Chechnya Rudnik Dudaev was taken to Vladikavkas in order to carry out a forensic medicine examination. Rudnik Dudaev died in fire that broke out in the caravan in which he lived in the territory of the governmental premises in Grozny. Meanwhile, the death of the high-ranking Chechen official might have been caused by an accident, according to the preliminarily obtained information. It's been the forth case of fire in the territory of the governmental quarters in Grozny in Garazhnaya Street. All the fires were caused by faults in the electric wiring. (From our correspondent) Achkhoy-Martan district. Chechen Republic Report # 901 Abducted resident of Samashki village is found in the police station On 5 December 2005 the Khamzalotovs, a family of residents of the village of Samashki of the Chechen Achkhoy-Martan district, got information about the whereabouts of their relative Khamzalotov Aslan (born 1981) who had been taken away from his house situated at the address 1 Zagornaya Street by a group of unidentified people at night from 2 to 3 December 2005. As of the present moment, the young man is being kept in custody in Achkhoy-Martan police station. The information was obtained from another resident of Samashki village, Tsaguev Bislan Alievich (born 1980) who had been detained together with him and released on 5 December. Aslan Khamzalotov's father and his sister Koka told a correspondent of the RCIA about the details of Aslan's abduction. At night from 2 to 3 December five armed men in camouflage burst into the Khamzalotovs' house. Four of them were wearing masks. According to the family members, all of them were ethnic Chechens. Threatening people with arms, they made all the men lie down onto the floor and started searching the house. Then one of them ordered Aslan stand up. Having told “it's him who we need”, he took him out of the house. Then they ordered the young man to get into an UAZ vehicle that was waiting in the yard and drove away. In Koka Khamzalotova's words, she rushed out of the house after the abductors and noticed another UAS 469 vehicle. There were some four or five armed people in the street at that time. There were several other force agents in the yard of her grandfather's household that is situated in a neighboring street. In the woman's words, there were some 13 or 15 armed people in the street. On 4 December several servicemen of Achkhoy-Martan police office came to the Khamzalotovs' house. Having shown no documents and produced no explanations, they searched the house once again. When they finished searching, they made the family members sign the protocol of the search. On 5 December the Khamzalotovs learnt from Bislan Tsaguev that Aslan was being kept in Achkhoy-Martan district police office. They claim that they are absolutely unaware of the reasons for Aslan's detention. (From our correspondent) Urus-Martan district. Chechen Republic Report # 900 A lot of cattle are stolen in Urus-Martan district center On 8 December 2005 a group of residents of the Chechen Urus-Martan district turned to a correspondent of the RCIA with the request to assist them in investigating the case of cattle capture that took place a day before. According to the people, the cattle disappeared from a pasture located at the west outskirts of the town. Two local people, Akhmadov Timur and Akhmadov Tagir, stated that they saw a group of unknown armed people whipping up the cattle in the direction of the mountains in the evening of December 7th. There were five or six people in the group, in their words. (From our correspondent) Achkhoy-Martan district. Chechen Republic Report # 899 Explosive device is de-activated in Guekhi village On 8 December 2005 a reconnaissance unit of the Russian federal forces detected a planted explosive device at the South-East edge of the village of Guekhi of the Chechen Urus-Martan district. It was de-activated at the site by exploding another charge set over the detected one. (From our correspondent) Ingushetia Report # 898 Passport checking in a café: two residents of Chechnya are killed and a woman is wounded On 6 December 2005 the police carried out a special operation aimed at checking passports in the settlement of Sleptsovskaya of Ingushetia. In the operation the police shot dead two visitors of the “Meridian” café identified as Tamerlan Baysagurov (born 1972) and Said-Khasan Musostiv (born 1977) and the woman who owns this café was wounded. Both killed men were residents of Chechnya. According to some witnesses' testimonies, the men refused to follow the order to show their IDs and made an attempt to put up resistance. The police opened aimed fire at them. Both men died on the spot. The woman was reportedly wounded by accident. (From our correspondent) Ingushetia Report # 897 Some 200 people are going to Mecca from Ingushetia On 9 December 2005 some two hundred people living in Ingushetia are going to make a hajj to the sacred town for Muslims of Mecca. The ceremonial departure is scheduled for December 20. (From our correspondent) Great Britain Report # 895 Freedom of expression has become the main issue of the discussion at the EU NGO Forum in London On 8 December 2005 7th EU NGO Forum on freedom of expression began in London (the United Kingdom). The forum is held in Lancaster House and it is organized by the Council of Europe and the government of the Great Britain as the president of the EU. Today the forum was opened by doctor Kim Howells MP, FCO Minister, Rolf Timans, Head of Human Rights and Democratization, Directorate-General for External Relations, European Commission, and Mikloz Haraszti, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. Dr. Kim Howells pointed to the problem of adopting restrictive laws in some countries and repressive control over mass media. The speaker pointed to the fact that in many countries freedom of expression is being suppressed at present. He confirmed this assumption by the following numbers: as of the present moment, some 200 journalists are being kept in custody and 60 journalists have been killed. In Kim Howells' opinion, the leaders of the countries that suppress freedom of expression of mass media and non-governmental organizations put innumerable obstacles to the development of their economic infrastructures and combating on terror. The speaker stated, “Freedom of expression and free access to information are the most crucial elements in the fight against terror”. Professor Rolf Timans, Head of Human Rights and Democratization, Directorate-General for External Relations, European Commission, stated in his speech addressed to the participants of the forum that freedom of expression is a matrix and the indispensable condition for all other forms of freedoms. He emphasized that it is a touchstone of all other freedoms and it can't be regarded as just an issue of personal dignity. It is a way and means to settle various complicated problems. The speaker pointed to such countries as Cuba, Byelorussia, Tunisia and Uzbekistan as evidences how the authorities can apply censorship, pressure, criminal prosecution and direct assaults to suppress freedom of expression. Rolf Timans also stated that it was necessary to put pressure upon the authorities of the states that repress freedom of expression and associations. In conclusion Rolf Timans said that the European Commission sees support to freedom of expression as the main goal of the program “The European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights”. Professor Mikloz Haraszti pointed to the lack of independence in television as one of the main obstacles for freedom of expression. In the speaker's opinion, this problem concerns all countries of the former USSR. Mikloz Haraszti stated in his speech, “This circumstance leads to annihilation and disappearance of national cultures”. The speaker expressed his deep concern about restrictions on the access to electronic channels of obtaining information in many countries. The EU NGO Forum will finish its work tomorrow, on 9 December. Oksana Chelysheva (From Great Britain) Vedeno district. Chechen Republic Report # 894 Abduction of a resident of the village of Elistanzhi On 6 December 2005 at about 6 am a group of unidentifiable armed men abducted Mezhidov Doa (aged 36) from his house situated in the village of Elistanzhi of the Chechen Vedeno district. According to his relatives, the abductors arrived at their house in three UAZ vehicles. Having burst into the house, they captured Mezhidov Doa without any explanations. They handcuffed him, took out of the house and drove away to an unknown destination. The same day the members of the Mezhidovs submitted their report on the Doa's abduction to the police office and the military commandant's office of the Chechen Vedeno district. However, the abducted man's destiny and whereabouts remain unknown. (From our correspondent) Grozny. Chechen Republic Report # 893 Sister of an abducted person turns to human rights advocates for assistance On 8 December 2005 Manshetova Irina Viktorovna came to RCIA office in Grozny and told about her brother's abduction. The Manshetovs are residents of Grozny where they live at the address 1/12 Tuchin Str., ap.13. According to the woman, on 6 December 2005 at about midnight she was at home together with her brother Manshetov Ruslan Viktorovich (born 1982) when they heard somebody knocking at the door. Ruslan opened the door. There were two unknown people standing at the door. One of them was wearing a camouflage uniform and he was holding a submachine gun. The second man was dressed in civilian clothes. The woman didn't hear the whole conversation between her brother and the strangers. Then she heard them ordering Ruslan Manshetov to get dressed and follow them. Irina asked where they were going to take him. One of the men answered that Ruslan would be taken to the police office of Grozny Leninsky district. He also told that he would be released after the interrogation. Irina looked out of the window and saw an “Ural” military truck standing in the yard. There were some other vehicles but Irina can't remember their makes. Irina went to the police office of Leninsky district early in the morning the next day but she was told that Ruslan Manshetov was not registered among detained people who were kept there. As of the present moment, Ruslan Manshetov's relatives don't know anything about his whereabouts. The young man was discharged from the Russian army after he had been conscripted to the service. In his sister's words, he was not involved into any criminal activities. (From our correspondent) http://www.ria.hrnnov.ru/eng/index.php |