Danish Support Committee
for Chechnya
Press release
The European Union abandons the Chechens (final document of the EU-Russia summit)
Russia's President Putin got his will at the just finished summit between the
EU and Russia in St. Petersburg.
The open criticism by the EU countries of the continued massive Russian human
rights violations in Chechnya has totally disappeared in the final document.
Many commentators describe the communiqué about Chechnya - among other
things - as "trivial".
We happen to think that it is much worse:
The EU countries have now in reality legalized the behaviour of the Kremlin
in Chechnya:
- The EU now supports Putin's so-called "peace plan" for Chechnya. This "peace"
plan is nothing but hot air! It only implies peace with the people who Putin
himself has "put into office" in Chechnya. People who - among others - Per Stig
Møller [Danish foreign minister] has described plainly as "Quisling people".
Is it with them that the EU now believes a stable peace can be established?
- The EU "took note" of the referendum in Chechnya on 23 March. Took note of
what??? As late as in March, nobody else than the Council of Europe criticized
Putin's totally manipulated "referendum" in Chechnya. A "referendum" in which
the Russian occupation troops even were allowed to vote (!). A straight repeat
of old Soviet methods. Quite consequently, the official "election results" were
openly manipulated.
- Where is the demand by the EU that Chechnya's last democratically elected
president, Aslan Maskhadov, must be involved in the negotiations? No peace can
be established without all parts in Chechnya being included, especially Maskhadov,
who won an election recognized by the OSCE in 1997.
- The EU countries declare their agreement with Putin about a common "fight
against terror". But Russia continues to regard every political and military
resistance in Chechnya as "terror"... Where is the condemnation by the EU and
the Fogh-Rasmussen government of the worst terrorist - without comparison -
in Chechnya since 1994: the Russian military that has killed at least 100,000
Chechens?
- Recently (21 May), Chechen human rights activist Zura Bitiyeva and several
of her family members were brutally murdered in Chechnya by para-military Russian
death squads. The case has been raised in the Danish parliament. Did the Danish
government raise the question of this vicious crime with the Russian government
during the EU-Russia summit?
We urge the Danish government - which according to its own statements leads
a so-called "activist foreign policy" - to work for realistic negotiated solutions
with regard to Chechnya, both in the EU and bilaterally. Without the inclusion
of among others the president elected by the Chechens themselves, Maskhadov,
the horrible war in Chechnya will continue for a long time to come.
Copenhagen, 1 June, 2003.
Danish Support Committee for Chechnya
For more information, please contact the chairman of the committee, Thomas Bindesbøll
Larsen, Tel. +45 2664 2400 , el +45 4580 0435
Mail: formand@Tjetjenien.dk WEB: http://www.tjetjenien.dk
[My translation]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Støttekomiteen for Tjetjenien:
PRESSEMEDDELELSE:
EU SVIGTER TJETJENERNE (EU-Rusland-topmødesluterklæring)
Ruslands præsident Putin fik det som han ville på det nyligt afsluttede
topmøde mellem EU og Rusland i St. Petersborg.
EU-landenes åbne kritik af de fortsatte massive russiske menneskerettighedskrænkelser
i Tjetjenien forsvandt fuldstændigt i sluterklæringen. Mange kommentatorer
betegner fælleserklæringen om bl.a. Tjetjenien som ”intetsigende”.
Vi synes faktisk det er langt værre:
EU-landene har nu i realiteternes verden blåstemplet Kremls fremfærd
i Tjetjenien:
- EU støtter nu Putins såkaldte "fredsplan" for Tjetjenien. Denne
"freds"plan er intet andet end varm luft! Den omfatter kun "fred" med de folk,
som Putin selv har "indsat" i Tjetjenien. Personer, som bl.a. Per Stig Møller
i folketinget har betegnet som rene "Quislingfolk". Er det med dem, EU nu mener
man kan tilvejebringe en holdbar "fred" i Tjetjenien ?
- EU "noterer sig" folkeafstemningen i Tjetjenien d. 23. marts. Noterer sig
hvad??? Så sent som i marts kritiserede ingen ringere end Europarådet
Putins totalt manipulerede "folkeafstemning" i Tjetjenien. En "afstemning" hvor
de russiske besættelsessoldater endda selv fik lov til at stemme med(!)
En ren genopførelse af gamle Sovjetmetoder. De officielle "valgresultater"
var da også åbenlyst manipulerede.
- Hvor er EU's krav om at Tjetjeniens seneste folkevalgte præsident, Aslan
Maskhadov, skal inddrages i forhandlingerne? Ingen fred kan skabes uden indragelse
af alle parter i Tjetjenien; især Maskhadov, der i 1997 vandt et OSCE-godkendt
valg.
- EU-landene erklærer sig enige med Putin om fælles "terrorbekæmpelse".
Men Rusland betragter jo fortsat enhver politisk og militær modstand i
Tjetjenien som "terror"… Hvor er EU's - og Fogh-Rasmussens-regeringens
- fordømmelse af den siden 1994 uden sammenligning største terrorist
i Tjetjenien - nemlig dét russiske militær, der har dræbt
mindst 100.000 tjetjenere ?
- Fornylig (21. maj) blev den tjetjenske menneskeretsforkæmper Zura Bitiewa
og flere i hendes familie brutalt myrdet i Tjetjenien af para-miltære
russiske dødspatruljer. Sagen er blevet rejst i det danske folketing.
Tog den danske regering denne gemene forbrydelse op overfor den russiske regering
under EU-Rusland topmødet?
Vi opfordrer den danske regering - der efter eget udsagn fører
en såkaldt "aktivistisk udenrigspolitik" - til både
i EU og bilateralt at arbejde for realistiske forhandlingsløsninger mht.
Tjetjenien. Uden inddragelse af bl.a. tjetjenernes selv valgte præsident,
Maskhadov, vil den forfærdelige krig i Tjetjenien fortsætte i lange
tider endnu.
København, 1. juni 2003,
STØTTEKOMITEEN FOR TJETJENIEN
For nærmere oplysninger, kontakt formanden:
Thomas Bindesbøll Larsen,
TLF. 2664 2400 , el 4580 0435
Mail: formand@Tjetjenien.dk WEB: http://www.tjetjenien.dk