From Gazeta Wyborcza, Sep.09, 2003 issue maw 09-90-2003

Russian human rights activists split on the issue of elections in Chechnya

The Russian human rights activists split on the issue of elections in Chechnya Part of Russian human rights activists called yesterday that planned for Oct. 5th presidential elections in Chechnya should be recognized as illegitimate, some of them also against sending any observers to Chechnya.

The main argument in these elections, it's a Kalashnikov machinegun. We can't affirm by our participation this kind of situation - explains Lev Ponomarev, the chief of "For Human Rights" organization. According to him, a majority of people will go to vote because they are afraid of repressions or are being forced, and surely will support the interim president - Akhmad Kadyrov. -

People are more afraid of Kadyrov's terror than the repressions of Russian army and terrorists attacks - says Svetlana Ganushkina from Memorial, which also yesterday called on activists of the NGO's not to go to Chechnya as observers. - We will see these elections like in Soviet times, when people en masse were going to balloting boxes, and when leaving, they were saying that everything was so great - ironizes Ganushkina. Different view has Ludmila Alexeyeva - the chief of Moscow Helsinki Group, who's sending to Chechnya 400 observers under the patronage of Ella Pamfilova, the chief of Human Rights Commission by the pres. of Russia. - At the beginning, I also had an opinion that elections had no sense, the same as sending observers to Chechnya - explains Alexeyeva to Gazeta. - But, we are not able to stop these elections now. So, it's better to look on the hands of electoral committees.

To send observers have asked me also many Chechens, who don't want that the elections will be totally transformed into a farce. I know, that I will have very little influence on the situation, but at least, from these observers, the world will know what kind of manipulations took place there.