Persoverzicht Tsjetsjenië - april 2006

• 2006-05-03
• Europa in de wereld

3 april 2006

- Plan to introduce juries in Chechnya: Dailies report about a draft law submitted to the Duma which envisages the introduction of juries in Chechnya. Some experts, however, call this move premature. Chechnya remains the only Russian region where juries have not yet been established. (Novye Izvestia, Vedomosti)

6 april 2006

- US warns Americans of terrorist attack risk in Russia: In a front-page article, Nezavisimaya gazeta reports that the US Department of State has warned Americans of a high risk of terrorist attacks in Russia and not to travel to the North Caucasus region (Chechnya and neighbouring republics). According to the daily, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the warning should not be over-dramatized. (NG)

7 april 2006

- Army Tribunals to Hear Chechen Cases: The Constitutional Court on Thursday ruled that grave crimes committed by the military in Chechnya would be tried by military tribunals until the use of juries is introduced in the republic, Chechen and Russian officials said. The decision came after juries in the nearby Rostov region twice acquitted four members of an elite military intelligence unit charged with killing six civilians in Chechnya, sparking outrage among Chechen civilians and their leaders. The acquittals in the case of Captain Eduard Ulman and three subordinates reinforced the impression among rights advocates and many Chechens that federal soldiers and Chechen security forces frequently act with brutal impunity, even killing, abducting and intimidating civilians in Chechnya. (All media)

- Serviceman charged with killing three Chechens gets 18 years in jail: A military court on Thursday sentenced a serviceman to 18 years in prison for killing three Chechen civilians in November. Alexei Krivoshyonok, a contract soldier whose rank and age were not disclosed, was found guilty of hooliganism that led to murder, and he will serve out the sentence in a maximum-security prison, according to the ruling of the Rostov-based North Caucasus Military District Court. (Interfax, Moscow Times)

- Some 700 have died in mine explosions in Chechnya: Some 696 people have died and another 2,349 have been injured in explosions of mines and blind shells since the beginning of the counter-terrorist operation in Chechnya. The information was made public at a meeting between Chechen Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov and the head of International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) mission to the North Caucasus, Robert Drawen. According to the information, the bulk of the victims were children and women. Over all, 572 women have been injured and 99 have died, while 130 children have been injured and 616 killed. Kadyrov said that he highly valued the ICRC's support for the Chechen residents who have suffered from the conflict. "We feel the support and the assistance of the ICRC and hope that cooperation between the international organization and Chechen authorities will be expanded," Kadyrov said. (Interfax)

10 april 2006

- Three killed in militant attack in Chechnya; policemen killed in Dagestan: (i) According to the Chechen Interior Ministry, one police officer and two civilians were killed in a militant attack yesterday in Chechnya’s Sunzha district. (ii) Electronic media report that two policemen and a suspected militant were killed in a special operation today in Makhachkala. (RIAN, Interfax)

- Prosecutor General to discuss HR in Chechnya: In a front-page article, Nezavisimaya gazeta reports that during an upcoming visit to Chechnya, Russia’s Prosecutor General Vladimir Ustinov will discuss the human rights situation with regional officials. Ahead of the visit, Chechen ombudsman Nurdi Nukhazhiev stated that unlawful methods are being used with regard to Chechen residents during detentions and investigative operations. (NG)

11 april 2006

- British citizen detained in Ingushetia: According to media reports, a British citizen travelling in Russia at the invitation of the UN has been detained at the Ingush-Chechen administrative border for violating visa-regime rules and ordered by a Nazran court to leave Russia within three days. (Interfax, MT, Vremya novostei)

12 april 2006

- UNHCR visits Chechnya: On a visit to Chechnya this week, UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres did not rule out that a UNHCR office might be opened in Chechnya in the near future and noted that the security situation in the region is improving. He is quoted by Gazeta as having announced the UN intention to allocate $70 million for the reconstruction of Chechnya this year. (Gazeta, Interfax)

- Chechnya softens rules for foreign NGOs’ employees: Vremya novostei reports that Chechen authorities have simplified the rules for the stay in Chechnya of employees of international NGOs and lifted the 2001 restrictions such as the obligation to inform in advance the authorities about the programme of the visit to Chechnya and the routes of travel. (Vremya novostei)

- HR employee detained in Chechnya: An employee at the Chechen office of the Civic Assistance Committee human rights organisation, which helps refugees, has been detained by law enforcement officials in Chechnya during a police operation to search people involved in the murder of village residents. (Gazeta, Interfax, Novye Izvestia)

18 mei 2006

- Chechen PM criticises federal troops: Nezavisimaya gazeta reports that Chechen PM Ramzan Kadyrov has demanded that the Interior Ministry’s detective bureau No. 2 be withdrawn from Chechnya. He accused the agency of illegal detentions in Chechnya. (NG)

19 april 2006

- Moscow protests against US ‘Chechen seminar’: The Russian Foreign Ministry yesterday handed US Ambassador to Russia William Burns a note of protest over a seminar in Washington last week organised by the US NGO Jamestown Foundation to discuss the situation in the Northern Caucasus, during which “the floor was given for appeals for new terrorist acts on Russian territory”. (Interfax, Vremya novostei)

21 april 2006

- Chechen PM demands accommodation centres be closed down: (i) Dailies report about a statement by Chechen PM Ramzan Kadyrov who has described temporary accommodation centres (PVR) in Chechnya as “seats of crime, drug addiction and prostitution” and demanded that all such centres be closed down in the near future. (ii) Gazeta reports about a Chechen Parliament decision to send a request to President Putin to set up an intergovernmental commission at the federal level to deal with the search for missing people in Chechnya. (Gazeta, Kommersant, RG)

- Chechen speaker backs merger of Chechnya, Ingushetia: The speaker of the Chechen Parliament’s lower chamber, Dukvakha Abdurakhmanov, has spoken in favour of the reunification of Chechnya and Ingushetia. In addition, he expressed the view that it should be “wise to consider the future establishment of a new entity in southern Russia which will include Dagestan, Chechnya and Ingushetia”. (Gazeta, Kommersant, NG, Novye Izvestia)

26 april 2006

- One killed during unrest in Dagestan; shootout in Chechnya?: (i) According to Dagestani police, one person was killed and several injured while riot police tried to quell an unrest in Dagestan. The media report that up to 700 local residents held a rally yesterday to demand the resignation of the head of the district administration. (ii) Gazeta reports about an alleged shootout yesterday in Grozny between special task troops subordinate to Chechen PM Ramzan Kadyrov and the guards of Chechen President Alu Alkhanov. No official commentary on the incident was provided by Chechen authorities. (Gazeta, Interfax, Kommersant, Vremya novostei)