Dick Marty came from the Caucasus

What will the famous senator from Switzerland talk about in PACE tomorrow?

In 2007, Dick Marty rocked Strasbourg. His report on the secret CIA prisons in Europe was called by journalists "one of the most scandalous in the history of PACE." The Russian delegation was outraged no less than the Polish or Romanian (the authorities of the two ...

In 2007, Dick Marty rocked Strasbourg. His report on the secret CIA prisons in Europe was called by journalists "one of the most scandalous in the history of PACE." The Russian delegation was no less outraged than the Polish or Romanian ones (the authorities of these two countries cooperated especially closely with the US intelligence agencies). In search of an answer to the nagging question - can democracies neglect human rights in the fight against terrorism? - Dick Marty also got Russia - for secret prisons in Chechnya.

Mikhail Margelov, a representative of the Russian delegation, told Kommersant at the time: “This has already become a tradition in PACE. If they didn't criticize Russia, then they didn't do anything. Here, a huge number of people have made a career on the Chechen theme. And what, now they consider that the topic is dead? Here they come back from time to time. It’s just that someone from the apparatus wrote the traditional “Carthage must be destroyed” into the report to Dick Marty.

But in the three years that the report on the North Caucasus was being prepared, a lot has changed. The same Russian delegation actively helped Dick Marty in his work. After repeated inquiries and appeals to the Russian Foreign Ministry, in March 2010 a Council of Europe delegation finally visited the three most troubled regions of the new North Caucasian Federal District: Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya. Dick Marty met with the presidents: Magomedov, Yevkurov and Kadyrov, with Plenipotentiary Khloponin, as well as with human rights activists and directly with the relatives of the abducted and killed.

Marty's report is published on the website of the Council of Europe. Based on the report, a draft PACE resolution was developed. Surprisingly, the Russian delegation unanimously supported this project, despite the fact that Marty's report is defiantly critical of Putin's policies in the Caucasus.

And in this sense, Marty's report is an underlined demonstration of the global political trend: Medvedev is good, Putin is bad. However, this was done with such fine diplomacy that the same Russian delegation pretended not to notice this deliberate opposition.

The myth of stability

“The tragic events took place just a few hours after our arrival in the region and were evidence of a worsening situation: bomb explosions in the Moscow metro and two days later in Dagestan. Another bomb attack took place directly during our stay in the North Caucasus. It is absolutely clear that the strategy of the Russian government has not led to the expected results. The amazing restoration [of Chechnya] was not followed by the restoration of human rights. President Medvedev acknowledged in November 2009 that the Caucasus was at the top of the list of Russian internal problems. The policy pursued in the North Caucasus not only failed, but also led to a surge of Islamic extremism…”

Personnel

“We must not forget that the heads of the three regions [Chechnya, Dagestan, Ingushetia] are elected not by the population, but by local parliaments under the leadership of the Kremlin… However, the situation is not identical in these three regions. The Ingush President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov is really concerned about the well-being of his people, and the people support him much more than his predecessor ( Murata Zyazikov. - E. M. ), who was appointed during the time of President Putin and dismissed by President Medvedev ...

President of Dagestan Magomedsalam Magomedov has been in office since February 2010. He gives the impression of a person who wants to improve the life of the peoples of Dagestan and resist religious extremism ...

Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov had previously fought against Russian forces before President Putin appointed him Republican leader and gave him significant powers. We have already noted considerable achievements in the restoration of Grozny and Chechnya. Even remote villages have gas and roads. The living conditions of the people have certainly improved. But at the same time, kidnappings, tortures and murders of people by militants and law enforcement agencies continue in the republic ... President Kadyrov denies any involvement of special services in these crimes. He even told us that he issued a ukaz*, which says: if representatives of law enforcement agencies are caught at the scene of a crime in masks, then they are subject to immediate execution without trial or investigation. We doubt that such a ukaz really exists and can be approved by the federal government, but Kadyrov's very argument clearly demonstrates the nature of the regime that has been established in Chechnya. Regarding the reasons for the existence of the underground, the President of Chechnya is categorical - this is the influence of foreign forces. When we asked which ones, Kadyrov replied that the Americans with the participation of Berezovsky. He also said that the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack was organized by the US itself. But what strikes the imagination most of all is the cult of personality in Chechnya, which is not typical for the other two regions [Dagestan and Ingushetia]. It is likely that some part of the population of Chechnya supports their president out of gratitude for the infrastructure restored after the war. But how long will this support last? Several observers have told us that Kadyrov's popularity has been declining for several months now…”

Numbers

“Despite the fact that the number of human rights violations has decreased since the two “official” wars in the Chechen Republic, we must condemn the increase in cases of violence, abductions, contract killings and terrorist attacks that emerged in 2009.

In the Chechen Republic, according to the Prosecutor General's Office, 536 people disappeared between 2006 and 2009. Of these, 287 people were abducted. During the same period, only 30 abduction cases were brought to court. After the cessation of the counterterrorist operation in early 2009, the activity of illegal armed groups did not decrease: the number of attempts on law enforcement officials, on the contrary, increased by 18.6%. In total, 631 law enforcement officers were injured in 2009 (compared to 575 in 2008), 74 people were killed (68 in 2008). The number of suicide attacks also increased in 2009, these crimes are becoming more brazen and violent.

In Ingushetia, the statistics of disappearances is 186 people for the period from 2006 to 2009, of which 163 people were found alive, three were killed. During the same period, 40 people became victims of abductions, not a single criminal case was opened on the fact of abduction.

In Dagestan, from 2006 to 2009, 671 people were listed as missing (188 in 2009 alone). 60 of them were abducted by people in camouflage uniforms (29 people in 2009 alone). Twelve abductees were found dead...

It is important to note that these statistics are incomplete. But even these numbers are great…”

Policy of impunity

“Since 2007, the Strasbourg Court has issued 150 decisions against the Government of the Russian Federation on complaints from residents of the North Caucasus. Most of these complaints relate to events that took place between 2000 and 2002. About 60% of complaints are kidnappings. The remaining applicants complain about the destruction of property, the disproportionate use of force, illegal detention, torture…

We were told [by authorities] that out of 150 decisions in which the Strasbourg Court found the guilt of representatives of the Russian authorities, only two criminal cases were investigated by Russian law enforcement agencies. The suspect in one of these criminal cases had already died by the time the investigation was completed. In another criminal case, the suspect has been identified, but is on the run...

Even when those responsible for violating human rights are absolutely precisely identified, there are no consequences...

In the case of Bazorkina v. Russia, there is a video recording made by a Russian TV channel. Federal forces arrest a young man, Khadzhi-Murat Yandiyev. His mother, Fatima Bazorkina, recognized him from this recording. General Baranov - this is clearly visible and audible - orders the soldiers: "Come on, let's take him, finish him off, shoot him ..." You can see how the Russian servicemen are taking Yandiev away. Nobody has seen him since.

Despite the decision of the Strasbourg court, the Russian authorities refused to open a criminal case against General Baranov. The letter from the military prosecutor's office, which Fatima Bazorkina's relatives received on March 24, 2008, says: "All violations of the European Convention on Human Rights pointed out by the European Court have been eliminated." Another letter, dated April 3, 2009, says: “No evidence has been found to implicate General Baranov in the kidnapping and murder of Khadzhi-Murat Yandiyev…”

Appeal to Medvedev

“Terrorist attacks in the Moscow metro cause horror and disgust. Such actions cannot be justified by anything... The language used by the representatives of the highest authorities of Russia - a promise to pick terrorists out of sewers and be even more cruel than terrorists - means playing on the same field with criminals and twisting the spiral of cruelty. 11 years ago, after the terrorist attacks in 1999, the Russian authorities already called for “wetting the terrorists in the toilet”…

In 1978 <...> the kidnapping and murder of [the chairman of the Italian Council of Ministers] Aldo Moro (by terrorists from the Red Brigades. - E.M. ) was <...> an attack on the very heart of the state. Many then demanded that the most cruel measures be applied to terrorists, incompatible with democratic values. General Carlo Alberto dela Chiesa, responsible for the fight against terrorists, said then: "Italy will survive the death of Aldo Moro, but will not survive the introduction of torture."

In March 2004, 191 people became victims of a terrorist attack in Spain. King Juan Carlos on the same day addressed the nation: “The country must know that the only possible reaction to barbarism and injustice is solidarity, steadfastness and calm…”

Italy has experienced its darkest times. Spain was able to find the criminals, justice was done. President Medvedev met with representatives of public organizations working in the North Caucasus. We read the transcript of this meeting. The role and importance of the president is extremely high, because, in our opinion, the tone of the conversation is changing, and we consider this a great achievement compared to what we have seen in the recent past…”.

* So in the report - "ukaz (decree)"