| eng.kavkaz.memo.ru Caucasian Knot
29/3/2005 Local man abducted, found dead The disfigured body of a local resident, Gadayev, was found in the vicinity of the village of Stariye Atagi, Grozny district, Chechnya, a few days ago. Locals say Russian security agencies had carried him off about a month and a half ago, according to the Council of Non-Governmental Organisations. Witnesses claim the man's body born marks of severe torture and abuse. The reason for Gadayev's abduction and extrajudicial execution is unknown. Friday, April 1, 2005. Issue 3137. Page 1. Lukin Blames All Sides in Chechnya By Anatoly Medetsky Staff Writer The country's ombudsman, Vladimir Lukin, criticized all sides in the Chechen conflict over human rights abuses and bemoaned a lack of press freedom in his annual report published Thursday, but he also surprisingly railed against high gasoline prices and said state television was intolerably full of commercials. A veteran human rights campaigner, however, said Lukin had tiptoed around sensitive political issues and had been careful not to make statements that could annoy the authorities. Lukin said responsibility for rights violations in Chechnya -- including killings, abductions and unauthorized arrests -- lay with both pro-Moscow and Chechen rebel forces and called for "a new, unconventional approach to the problem," according to the report, which was published in the official newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta. "We should not simplify the current situation by just reducing it to a dilemma of holding or not holding talks with separatist leaders who have discredited themselves," he said, referring to the Chechen conflict. "The priority here should be not only the unity and territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, but also the protection of citizens' basic rights and freedoms" both in Chechnya and in the rest of the country. Veteran human rights activist Lev Ponomaryov said he was disappointed that Lukin's report did not go as far as to call for negotiations to end the conflict. By stating that separatist leaders had "discredited themselves," Lukin showed that he did not support the idea of holding talks, Ponomaryov said. "There is a sharp borderline that Lukin does not cross," Ponomaryov said. "He doesn't want to get involved in political issues." Ponomaryov said that Lukin had failed to address several key human rights issues, and had apparently avoided giving his own view because he wanted to avoid political controversy, and had instead cited public opinion. "He failed to admit that cases of political prisoners have re-emerged," Ponomaryov said, naming arms control researcher Igor Sutyagin and physicist Valentin Danilov, who were jailed on charges of espionage, as examples. Lukin, a former senior member of the liberal Yabloko party who was appointed government ombudsman after President Vladimir Putin's re-election a year ago, said it was too early to give an assessment on Putin's scrapping of popular gubernatorial elections. Instead, he restricted himself to vaguely stating that the reform should not hurt democracy. Citing the example of last September's attack in Beslan, Lukin called on the state to protect its citizens from terrorist attacks, and called for citizens to help the state in its anti-terrorist efforts. Lukin said the authorities "have been increasing control over mass media lately." A way to make the media more independent would be to introduce lower taxes and subsidies for them, he said. Lukin also proposed creating an "experts' council" that would make recommendations in trials involving the media. Laws passed last year that imposed restrictions on public rallies and made referendums more difficult to organize were troubling, Lukin said, but he asserted that he would ensure the laws did not hinder civil rights. Lukin said the judicial and penal systems needed improvement, despite what he called some positive developments such as the introduction of jury trials and a reduction in the total prison population. But he noted that attempts to reduce widespread police violence had yielded only a "very limited" effect. He also called on law enforcement agencies to respect people's privacy by not illegally listening in on telephone conversations or opening mail when investigating crime and fighting terrorism. As well as making his cautious human rights complaints, Lukin also branched out to venture opinions on consumer and cultural issues in what appeared to be an attempt to reflect views expressed in public opinion polls. He lashed out in particular at the ubiquitous television commercials on state television, saying the government should look into why "state television channels that exist on taxpayers' money are overloaded with commercials." In another dig, Lukin tore into lowbrow television shows. "The low artistic and moral level of mass culture, and especially television broadcasts, is causing growing criticism from the public," he said. On the economy, Lukin lambasted poverty and said the government had to fight it by using the proceeds from high world oil prices to reform the economy. But he also took a swipe at higher domestic gasoline prices, which he said were "absurd for an oil-producing country." He said high oil prices hampered motorists' and public transport passengers' freedom of movement, a basic right. "He must have felt it himself," Ponomaryov joked, adding that he would not call high gasoline prices an encroachment on human rights. Lukin criticized the courts and the government for closing their eyes to ethnic and religious intolerance, saying the problem could threaten the country's unity. In a break with tradition, Lukin presented his report to Putin on March 1 and to Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov on March 18, before giving it to the State Duma. Previous holders of his post have presented annual reports only to the Duma. Lukin discussed the report with Putin and Fradkov to make it "more effective," said Andrei Lebedev, a spokesman for Lukin's office. The Duma is scheduled to hear the report in mid-April, he said. The report is the shortest one by a Russian ombudsman, said Svetlana Pastukhova, a spokeswoman for the office. 30.3.2005 "Clean-up" operations and abductions in Chechnya CHECHNYA. (Society for Russian-Chechen Friendship Information Centre). 28 March a group of armed men in camouflage uniforms abducted Tourpal-Ali Souleimanov, head of the local administration’s department for construction and architecture, from his home in Shatoi district. His further fate and whereabouts are unknown. Abductions and "clean-up" operations have continued in other regions of Chechnya. 28 March Russian military carried out so-called "large-scale clean-up operations" in Staropromyslovskiy district of Grozny. The area between Tashkala village and Ivanova town was cordoned off. Tracked armoured vehicles were placed in all the streets in the area. Members of local security forces took part in the "clean-up" operation that continued all day. 25 March a group of unknown assailants abducted the son of the head of Prigorodnoye village administration in Groznensky district. Several days ago, in the outskirts of Starye Ataghi village, locals discovered the body of Mr. Gadayev, a local resident. They said that he had been taken away by members of Russian security forces some six weeks previous. The injuries found on the body indicated that he had been subjected to torture and ill-treatment. Translated by Olga Sharp PRIMA-News Agency [2005-03-29-Chech-06] News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty International AI Index: EUR 46/011/2005 31 March 2005 Russian Federation: Russian police officer found guilty of crimes against the civilian population in the Chechen Republic Amnesty International welcomes the conviction and sentencing of Sergei Lapin, member of a special federal riot police unit (OMON) from the Khanty-Mansiisk region in the Russian Federation, by the Oktiabrskii District Court in Grozny in the Chechen Republic. For the first time a member of the Russian federal forces has stood trial in Chechnya itself for human rights violations against the civilian population. Sergei Lapin had been involved in the torture and "disappearance" of 26-year-old Zelimkhan Murdalov, who was detained on 2 January 2001 in Grozny. The court on 29 March 2005 found Sergei Lapin guilty of intentional infliction of serious harm to health under aggravating circumstances (article 111, part 3 of the Russian Criminal Code); exceeding official authority under aggravating circumstances (article 286, part 3) and forgery by an official (article 292). He was sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment in a strict regime prison colony. On release he will be banned from working for agencies under the Ministry of Internal Affairs for three years. In addition, the court sent a special ruling to the head of the Khanty-Mansiiskii OMON, reportedly criticising the conduct of the OMON unit serving in Chechnya in broader terms. Other individuals responsible for the torture and "disappearance" of Zelimkhan Murdalov have yet to be identified and brought to justice. Amnesty International has closely followed the case and campaigned for those who were found responsible for the "disappearance" of Zelimkhan Murdalov to be brought to justice. Amnesty International's section in Norway provided finances for the legal support in this landmark case. Sergei Lapin was initially detained and taken into pre-trial detention in January 2002. He was released in May of the same year pending trial. The trial started in October 2003 after intensive efforts of the family of Zelimkhan Murdalov to see justice done. The investigation found that on 3 January 2001 Zelimkhan Murdalov was taken into a cell in the district police of Oktiabrskii district by Sergei Lapin and another unidentified official. There Sergei Lapin had beaten Zelimkhan Murdalov with a truncheon. Zelimkhan Murdalov was also subjected to electric shock treatment while in detention. Witnesses told the court that while in the cell, Zelimkhan Murdalov could hardly stand and lost consciousness several times. His arm was broken, his ear torn and he had received a concussion to his head. The next day Sergei Lapin and some as yet unidentified colleagues took Zelimkhan Murdalov out of the cell and since then his fate and whereabouts remain unknown. Zelimkhan Murdalov's family faced harassment and intimidation for seeking justice and his mother and sister had to leave the country in search of security. Zelimkhan Murdalov's father Astemir Murdalov told Amnesty International that he is still searching for information about his son’s fate. Throughout the armed conflict in the Chechen Republic, Amnesty International has been concerned about the climate of impunity prevailing there and has called on the Russian authorities to bring to justice perpetrators of human rights violations. However, very few effective measures have been taken. Only very few cases of "disappearance", torture and ill-treatment or extrajudicial execution have reached the Courts. Many Chechen civilians have decided to turn to the European Court of Human Rights as the Russian judicial system has failed to show real commitment to punish those who commit human rights violations in the North Caucasus. While this ruling is of great importance not only for the family of Zelimkhan Murdalov, but for many other people in the Chechen Republic, who have been subjected to human rights violations and war crimes, much more needs to be done. Russian and Chechen officials give about 2000 as the official figure for "disappearances" since late 1999 and unofficial estimates are as high as 5000 "disappeared". Amnesty International and other human rights organizations working in the region have found evidence of the involvement of federal and Chechen forces in a large number of such cases of "disappearances". View all AI documents on the Russian Federation: http://amnesty-news.c.topica.com/maadlWjabfDv1beuxZvb/ ***************************************************************** You may repost this message onto other sources provided the main text is not altered in any way and both the header crediting Amnesty International and this footer remain intact. Only the list subscription message may be removed. ***************************************************************** Past and current Amnesty news services can be found at <http://www.amnesty.org/news/>. Visit <http://www.amnesty.org> for information about Amnesty International and for other AI publications. Contact amnestyis@amnesty.org if you need to get in touch with the International Secretariat of Amnesty International. Privacy policy <http://web.amnesty.org/pages/aboutai-privacy-eng> Apr 1 2005 3:36PM Sweep underway in Chechen village GROZNY. April 1 (Interfax) - An anti-guerrilla operation is currently taking place in the village of Chir-Yurt in Chechnya's Shali district. "Having received information that militants are hiding in a house in Chir-Yurt, policemen have launched an operation to detain them," the republic's Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov told Interfax. One of the guerrillas armed with an automatic rifle refused to surrender and opened fire on police officers trying to detain him, Alkhanov said. "The militant was injured after policemen opened fire in response. He has been detained and delivered to a pre-trial detention center," the minister said. April 1st 2005 · Prague Watchdog Four people kidnapped in Achkhoi-Martanovsky district By Ruslan Isayev CHECHNYA - During the past twenty four hours six people were kidnapped in Chechnya, four of whom were from the Achkhoi-Martanovsky district. This information was told to our Prague Watchdog correspondent by a source from the Chechen Interior Ministry. Two people were abducted from their homes in the town of Achkhoi-Martan. Their relatives were told not to bother looking for them as they would never see them again. The kidnappers arrived in several cars and supposedly were "Kadyrovites", subordinates of Ramzan Kadyrov, the self-styled Vice-Premier of the Moscow-backed Chechen government. However, one of the men was released after a few hours having been told his abduction was a mistake. Around the same time, two residents from the nearby villages of Samashki and Davydenko were also kidnapped and their whereabouts are unknown. Major Embezzlement Uncovered in Chechnya Restoration Program 01.04.2005 MosNews The investigation bureau of the Russian Interior Ministry for the Southern Federal District has uncovered major embezzlement of budget funds in Chechnya. An employee of the Stimeks research and production enterprise has been accused of embezzlement, Interfax news agency reported citing the temporary press center of the Russian Interior Ministry in the North Caucasus. A preliminary investigation has found that the man signed a contract with the capital building directorate of the Chechen government to carry out priority work restoring social facilities in the republic. He received over 54 million rubles (about $2 million) to do this work. The press center said that money was embezzled when the man drew up false documents for the repair work that had not been carried out. The Chechen Interior Ministry, quoted by the agency, said that several other major cases of embezzlement have been uncovered recently. A group of officials from a construction department drew up false documents in the name of a Moscow resident and stole over 74 million rubles intended for restoring social facilities in Chechnya. All the people involved have been identified and an investigation is under way. Chechenpress Mashadov's Family has Officially Requested Aslan Mashadov's Body from the State Office of the Public Prosecutor of the Russian Federation To the Public Prosecutor of the Russian Federation Vladimir Ustinov From Mashadova Kusama (born in the Kazakh SSR, settlement Atasu of the Zhana- Arkinskiy region, the Karaganda oblast, in 1950) From Mashadov Anzor (born in the village Platonovka, the Primorye Territory of the USSR, in1975) From Mashadova Fatima (born in the Hungarian Republic, Tata, in 1983) The Copy: to the Chairman of the Council for Assistance to Development of the Institutes of Civil Societies and Human Rights at the President of the Russian Federation Ella Pamfilova. The Copy: to the Co-Chairman of the Public Committee "Civil Assistance", to a Member of the Initiative Group for Association in Protection of Civil and Economic Rights in the Russian Federation "The Common Action" Svetlana Gannushkina. The Application On the 8 th of March, 2005, there was information in mass media of the Russian Federation, that, as the result of the operation, carried out by the Center of Special Purpose (CSP) of the FSB of the Russian Federation, the President of the Chechen Republic Ichkeria, Aslan Mashadov, was killed in the Chechen settlement Tolstoy-Yurt (Doikur-Evl). Our relatives, living in the territory of the Chechen Republic, identified Aslan Mashadov, born in 1951, in the victim during the identification actions carried out by the State Office of the Public Prosecutor of the Russian Federation. We, members of the family of Aslan Mashadov, also identified him as the head of our family by video shown on TV and by the photographic materials, published in press. As the closest relatives of Aslan Mashadov, we ask you to give the body to us to bury Aslan Mashadov, who was tragically lost on the 8 th of March, 2005, in the territory of the Chechen Republic in the settlement Tolstoy-Yurt (Doikur-Evl), and also we ask to give the official certificate on his death with specifying of the date, place and reasons of his death. We are seriously disturbed with the fact, that the assistant to the public prosecutor of the Russian Federation Nikolay Shepel has repeatedly declared in mass-media that Aslan Mashadov's body cannot be given to his family for burying according to the Russian law. All these applications radically contradict the principles of international humanity and the international obligations taken by Russia, as Aslan Mashadov was an honest politician, had no relation to terrorism and regularly publicly condemned it. We also ask you to provide safety of the body of the head of our family Aslan Mashadov till the judicial verdict on the given problem, instead of to bury it in a secret grave. We ask you to inform us about the decision on the given application in the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers of the Russian Federation , at the following address: 5, the 3 rd entrance, house No. 4, the Luchnikov lane, Moscow , 101000 Phone: + 7(095) 928-25-06 + 7(095) 206-89-58 Fax: + 7(095) 206-89-58 With hope for the positive decision of the problem, the members of the family of Aslan Mashadov: Kusama Mashadova - the widow, Anzor Mashadov - the son, Fatima Mashadova - the daughter. The 11th of March, 2005 . The given inquiry was sent to the State Office of the Public Prosecutor of the Russian Federation on the 29 th of March, 2005. The copies, as it is specified in the document, were given to Ella Pamfilova and Svetlana Gannushkina. The State Office of the Public Prosecutor should answer Mashadov's family through the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers of Russia. Chechenpress , the Department of letters, 01.04.05 http://chechenpress.co.uk/english/news/2005/04/02/01.shtml |