Ingushetia Situation Report No. 22

Latest developments 1. Last week Chechen rebels intensified the attacks on the Russian checkpoints and army bases.

2. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Chechen pro-independence Government, Mr. Akhmadov, is against the Russian Ministry of Emergencies (EMERCOM) to be a channel for aid to Chechnya.

3. On May 26, the Russian Federal officials announced that Russia could carry out air-strikes against Afghanistan for its alleged aid to Chechnya’s rebels.

4. On May 26, Russia’s top commander in the Chechnya conflict, General Gennady Troshev, urged the Russian Federal authorities to open peace talks after nine months of war in the republic.

5. Lately the Russian military officials in Chechnya introduced new rules of entering Grozny by civilians.

1. Last week the Russian Army planes bombed rebel positions near the village of Zhani-Vedeno. The Russian air force has had little success in ousting the Chechen guerrilla groups from their bases in the mountains. At the same time the Chechen fighters intensified their attacks on the Russian checkpoints and military bases in Chechnya. It has been reported that on June 1, the Chechen guerrillas attacked the Central Commandant’s Office of the city of Grozny. On May 27, the rebels attacked a check point in Zavodskoi District of Grozny. Another clash took place near the village of Aldi (on the edge of the Chechen capital) where the commandant’s base is located. Official Russian losses have reached 2,304 killed and 6,728 wounded since fighting in the North Caucasus region of Russia began in August 1999. But independent observers estimate that casualty figures are higher than those given by officials. Both the Russian military and the rebels tend to exaggerate the other side's losses while playing down their own.

2. On May 18, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Chechen pro-independence Government, Mr. Akhmadov, wrote a letter addressed to the Chairman and Members of United States Senate Committee on Appropriation. He expressed gratitude to the members of the Committee for the funds that have been allocated to international NGOs providing humanitarian assistance to Chechnya and Ingushetia. According to Mr. Akhmadov, the Russian authorities continue to deny free access to the war zone in the southern mountainous region to humanitarian organizations. The Minister has also emphasized that "Russia’s Ministry of Emergencies (EMERCOM) cannot be accepted as a channel for aid to Chechnya. "It would be unrealistic to expect the perpetrators of genocide to relieve the hardship of the population they are annihilating".

3. On May 26, top Kremlin officials announced that Russia could carry out air-strikes against Afghanistan for its alleged aid to Chechnya’s rebels. According to the Russian military, the RF Defense Ministry has finalized plans for the air raids and could launch them immediately should a decision to do so be made. Such possibility was confirmed by the Secretary of the RF Security Council, Mr. Ivanov who added that "Russia should not exclude anything from its arsenal".

4. On May 26, Russia’s top commander in the Chechnya conflict, General Gennady Troshev, urged the Russian Federal authorities to open peace talks after nine months of war in the republic. According to the General, it is time for politicians to put an end to the fighting. However, Mr. Troshev ruled out any negotiations with the leaders of pro- independence movement in Chechnya.

5. During the last few days, Russian military officials introduced a new system of passage of people willing to enter Grozny. Unlike before, now not only the former residents of the city but even those who don’t have Grozny registration stamp in their passports are allowed to come to the area. However, most of the people among the local population of the Chechen capital are still reluctant to return home. As a rule, they come to the city for one or two days and then leave the republic. It is the general attitude among the IDPs who found shelter in neighboring Ingushetia that there is no stability in the war-torn republic. The Chechens say that currently there is no authority to guarantee their safety in Chechnya.

IDP movements

According to the Ingush Migration Service, on May 22, as many as 2890 Chechnya IDPs came to Ingushetia whereas 2712 individuals crossed the border towards Chechnya. On May 24, 2767 IDPs arrived in Ingushetia and 2670 persons left for Chechnya. On May 25, this figure constituted 2622 and 2512 accordingly. On May 28,2938 people came from Chechnya to Ingushetia, 2421 people went to Chechnya from the Ingush Republic. All mentioned IDP movements have been recorded at two main checkpoints between Chechnya and Ingushetia: Kavkaz - 1 and Adler - 20.

Distribution DRC Program of Emergency Assistance to the people of Chechnya

Danish Refugee Council continues implementation of its program of food assistance in Chechnya. Since the beginning of the operation on May 11, DRC has sent 4 convoys of food aid to Urus-Martan and Shali Regions of Chechnya. So far, as many as 36,792 beneficiaries received food from DRC. The aid is being delivered to inner IDPs, host families and vulnerable categories of the local population (UNHCR criteria of vulnerability). The military personnel at the checkpoints in Chechnya doesn’t put obstacles on the way of DRC humanitarian convoys. Both republican and district authorities support and facilitate DRC to successfully implement its program in the Chechen Republic.

DRC distribution of DANIDA-funded food aid in Chechnya

No Location Number of W/Flour MT Sugar MT Oil L Date of beneficiaries distribution

Urus-Martan Region

1. Alkhazurovo 1657 16,4 1,65 1650 11-14 May

2. Alkhan-Yurt 1634 16,05 1,6 1605 11-14 May

3. Goiti 3100 30,8 3,1 3090 11-14 May

4. Shalazhi 810 7,8 0,8 780 11-14 May

5. Urus-Martan 9543 93,5 9,5 8568 16-21 May 6. Gekhi 2920 29,2 2,95 2920 25-30 May

7. Gekhi-Chu 475 4,75 0,5 475 25-28 May

8. Roshni-Chu 1250 12,5 1,25 1250 25-30 May

9. Tangi-Chu 190 1,9 0,2 190 25-28 May

10. Goiskoye 253 2,55 0,25 253 25-28 May

11. Martan-Chu 760 7,6 0,8 760 25-28 May

Total 22592 223,05 22,6 21541

Shali Region

1. N. Atagi 5700 56,65 5,7 5130 28 May - 2 June

2. Chiri-Yurt 8500 85 8,5 7650 28 May - 2 June

Total 14200 141,65 14,2 14200

Grand Total 36792 364,7 36,8 34321 DRC Integration Program in Ingushetia

As a part of its integration program for Chechnya IDPs in Ingushetia, in the period from May 22 to May 27 DRC delivered 17 MT of potatoes to 83 families living in Yuzhni settlement - over 200 kg of potatoes to each family - for planting on the land given to them by the Ingush Government. DRC has also assisted the beneficiaries with plowing of 16,5 hectares of land, treatment of the ground with cultivator, harrowing, trench - ploughing of 4,5 hectares of land.

Registration

Ingushetia

During the last ten days DRC has been adjusting its system of deregistration of Chechnya IDPs registered in Ingushetia. Thus, if during the period of previous week (from May 4 to May 18) the total number of registered Chechnya IDPs in Ingushetia was 8,782, the last two-week time interval (from May 19 to June 2) showed a total of 4,015 Chechnya IDPs registered in Ingushetia for that period, which is less than 50% of the previous figure. A total of 248,988 Chechnya IDPs were registered in Ingushetia as of June 2. The total number of host families which don’t charge IDPs for staying at their premises is 9,637.

It has been decided to register families consisting only of direct relatives and register the rest of their relatives as separate families in Ingushetia. Since the aid is given away to the heads of families, this will help to get a better picture of the IDPs presently staying in Ingushetia and will contribute to a more efficient distribution of humanitarian aid. This system is also being used in Chechnya. Apart from that, when the registration of the population in Chechnya is over and the information is typed into the computerised database, DRC will be able to compare two databases and prevent IDPs registered as beneficiaries of humanitarian aid in both republics to receive assistance at the same time in Chechnya and Ingushetia. The permanent registration points will be set up in all major populated areas to be able to regularly update the information in DRC Ingushetia and Chechnya databases. Thus, in Urus-Martan Region of Chechnya there has already been identified some 27,500 persons who are registered as IDPs staying in Ingushetia. When received aid in one of the republics, such people will be deleted from the lists of beneficiaries of the aid in the other one.

Chechnya

DRC continues the registration of the population in the Chechen Republic. By June 3, DRC registrars have registered almost all areas of northern and southern Chechnya apart from some mountain part of the republic where the military activities are still strong. In a week’s time, DRC registration teams expect to finish registration in Grozny. By June 3, as many as 748,000 individuals have been registered by DRC in Chechnya. The final figure is expected to be lower, as some people may have registered more than once. This will become apparent the computerisation of data is concluded. Information on 430,000 persons is already entered into the database.

In late May, DRC completed computerisation of data on IDPs in Urus-Martan, Achkhoi-Martan, Shali and Kurchaloi Regions. Below are abstracts of the results of the registration.

Statistical information on the population of Urus-Martan Region: (as of May 23)

Location Total Residents Inner IDPs Host families Vulnerable Beneficiaries* number of people

Alkhazurovo 5496 4542 954 115 643 1712

Alkhan-Yurt 8114 7724 390 38 1333 1761

Gekhi 10506 9206 1300 137 1483 2920

Gekhi - Chu 2449 2449 0 0 475 475

Goiski 1051 975 86 37 130 253

Goiti 11820 9955 1859 191 1281 3331

Grushevi 3876 3659 219 18 523 760

Roshni-Chu 4496 3892 604 28 618 1250

Tangi 1594 1594 0 1 189 190

Urus-Martan 36169 30910 5271 690 4189 10150

Shalazhi 4876 4673 203 0 648 851

Total 90447 79579 10886 1255 11512 23653 *Inner IDPs, host families and vulnerable

Vulnerable population in Urus-Martan Region*: (as of May 23)

Vulnerability Alkhazurovo Alkhan- Gekhi Gekhi- Goiskoye Goiti Grushevi Roshni- Tangi Urus- Shalazhi criteria Yurt Chu Chu Martan

Pregnant 23 30 59 0 1 20 5 15 0 82 26 women

Lactating 81 277 173 21 16 217 68 49 23 524 66 women

Children 0 - 12 129 277 318 69 26 259 99 105 38 1014 108 months

Children 12 - 183 462 440 119 25 484 205 172 80 1572 200 36 months

Invalids and 131 152 229 133 24 167 79 103 23 421 86 mentally ill people

Elderly 36 4 31 54 1 1 2 60 9 94 66 unaccompanied

Orphans 1 0 64 64 1 3 11 24 3 21 16

Single parent 59 131 169 15 36 130 54 90 13 461 80 families

Total 643 1333 1483 475 130 1281 523 618 189 4189 648 * Excluding inner IDPs

Statistical information on the population of Achkhoi-Martan Region: (as of May 21)

Location Total Residents Inner IDPs Host families Vulnerable Beneficiaries* number of people

Assinovski 12464 5252 7212 26 853 8091

Achkhoi- 20208 16687 3521 233 3159 6913 Martan

Valerik 7011 5542 1469 48 801 2318

Davidenko 1434 1326 108 25 183 316

Zakan-Yurt 5703 4405 1298 103 516 1917

Katyr-Yurt 7751 6878 873 51 849 1773

Novo Sharoi 1661 1474 187 24 206 417

Samashki 7092 6948 144 9 1166 1319

S. Achkhoi 61 61 0 0 4 4

Sernovodsk 11900 7192 4708 163 1178 6049

Khambi-Irze 3054 2350 704 37 513 1254

Shaami-Yurt 3658 3424 234 31 687 952

Yandi 538 509 29 5 109 143

Total 82535 62048 20487 755 10224 31466 *Inner IDPs, host families and vulnerable

Vulnerable population in Achkhoi-Martan Region*: (as of May 21)

Vulnerabilit Assins AchkhoiMart Valeri Daviden Zaka Katy Novo Samash S. Sern Khamb Shaam Yan y criteria ki an k ko n- r- Shar ki Achkh o i-Irze i-Yurt di Yurt Yurt oi oi vods k

Pregnant 26 214 92 9 31 52 26 29 0 26 24 46 2 women

Lactating 69 275 80 13 36 88 20 82 0 104 46 83 12 women Children 0 - 136 562 190 40 102 189 35 149 3 189 80 125 9 12 months

Children 12 - 227 836 266 50 171 333 52 251 1 274 135 142 12 36 months

Invalids and 118 458 81 39 70 89 25 322 0 207 37 110 15 mentally ill people

Elderly 117 85 5 0 22 8 17 1 0 81 113 0 47 unaccompani ed

Orphans 19 19 3 0 25 2 0 2 0 7 8 0 4

Single parent 141 710 84 32 59 88 31 330 0 290 70 181 8 families

Total 853 3159 801 183 516 849 206 1166 4 1178 513 687 109 * Excluding inner IDPs

Statistical information on the population of Shali Region: (as of May 25)

Location Total Residents Inner IDPs Host families Vulnerable Beneficiaries* number of people

Avturi 10732 9126 1606 359 1671 3636

Agishti 399 387 12 6 42 60

Argun 23120 21136 1984 355 3352 5691

Belgatoi 3326 2729 597 126 503 1226

Germenchuk 6748 5919 829 187 1052 2068

Duba-Yurt 605 573 32 7 57 96

Mesker-Yurt 7716 7182 534 135 1226 1895

N. Atagi 9900 5724 4176 848 628 5652

Serzhen- 3066 3042 24 7 526 557 Yurt

Chiri-Yurt 11369 4178 7191 908 399 8498

Shali 28153 23646 4507 1085 5102 10694

Total 105134 83642 21492 4023 14558 40073 *Inner IDPs, host families and vulnerable

Vulnerable population in Shali Region*: (as of May 25)

Vulnerability Avturi Agishti Argun Belgatoi Germen Duba- Mesker- N.Atagi Serzhen- Chiri- Shali criteria chuk Yurt Yurt Yurt Yurt

Pregnant 49 1 104 14 8 3 10 16 0 13 91 women

Lactating 116 5 353 52 105 7 128 56 24 31 360 women

Children 0 - 12 217 5 622 83 168 13 214 143 76 84 613 months

Children 12 - 36 471 10 803 111 313 14 353 246 152 137 1189 months

Invalids and 106 4 392 51 64 5 38 68 55 56 433 mentally ill people

Elderly 475 12 529 49 307 4 263 25 191 35 1078 unaccompanied

Orphans 7 1 19 5 2 0 0 1 0 1 61

Single parent 230 4 530 138 85 11 220 73 28 42 1277 families

Total 1671 42 3352 503 1052 57 1226 628 526 399 5102 * Excluding inner IDPs

Statistical information on the population of Kurchaloi Region: (as of June 2)

Location Total Residents Inner IDPs Host families Vulnerable Beneficiaries* number of people

Alleroi 6262 5999 263 74 994 1331

Akhkinchu- 796 757 39 8 136 183 Barzoi

Bachi-Yurt 9837 9329 508 108 1452 2068

Belti 594 580 14 3 80 97

Geldagana 5991 5505 486 123 816 1425

Dzhugurti 1025 950 75 16 153 244

Kurchaloi 12738 11473 1265 281 2185 3731

Mayrtoup 6389 5783 606 144 1197 1947

Tsentoroi 4419 4248 171 40 724 935

Tsotsi-Yurt 7903 7316 587 122 1504 2213

Yalkhoi- 1971 1937 34 8 298 340 Mohck

Total 57925 53877 4048 927 9539 14514 *Inner IDPs, host families and vulnerable

Vulnerable population in Kurchaloi Region*: (as of June 2) Vulnerability Alleroi Akhkinchu- Bachi- Belty Geldagana Dzugurty Kurchaloi Mayrtoup Zentoroi Tsotsi- Yalkhoi- criteria Barzoi yurt yurt Moxk

Pregnant 119 10 84 6 41 2 163 115 44 79 2 women

Lactating 178 11 222 9 95 25 238 174 86 104 43 women

Children 0 - 12 183 20 339 18 178 28 383 213 150 254 65 months

Children 12 - 227 35 410 19 251 37 537 283 233 397 80 36 months

Invalids and 132 23 166 14 152 40 444 195 113 138 78 mentally ill people

Elderly 26 23 70 1 3 0 69 22 33 308 3 unaccompanied

Orphans 2 0 5 0 0 0 6 3 0 4 0

Single parent 127 14 156 13 96 21 345 192 65 220 27 families

Total 994 136 1452 80 816 153 2185 1197 724 1504 298 * Excluding inner IDPs

UNHCR/WFP/DRC Joint Program of Emergency Assistance

Distribution up-date FOOD ITEMS

Based on the supplies provided by UNHCR, a total of 3731,7 MT of food items have been distributed by DRC from 23 December to 28 May in Ingushetia.

UNHCR Commodities Distributed by DRC in the period of 23.12.99 - 28.05.2000

Total for Nazran City, Nazran Region and Sunzha Region

W/Flour Sugar Millet Barley Peas Oil Salt Rice Canned Canned Beef Beef

UNITS MT MT MT MT MT L MT MT MT Piece

Total Items 2169,886 185,838 257,961 270,007 250,912 359023 35,369 188,741 14.004 35.009 distributed by DRC WFP food items have been distributed by DRC from 13 February to 28 May in the amount of 5466,8 MT.

WFP Commodities Distributed by DRC in the period of 13.02.00 - 28.05.2000

Total for Nazran Municipal District, Nazran Region and Sunzha Region

W/Flour Sugar Pulses Oil Salt

UNITS MT MT MT L MT

Total Items distributed by DRC 4471,999 359,805 284,226 278023 72,844 Ingushetia food-aid distribution split up.

Name of NGO Malgobek Nazran Nazran Region Sunzha Region "Sputnik" and Karabulak Region Municipal (excl. Nazran (excl. camps) "Severni" town and area District Municipal Camps (incl. Camps) District)

DRC/WFP/UNHCR/EU X X X X

Islamic Relief X X Nazran Municipal District includes Nazran City, Altievo, Gamurzievo, Barsuki, Plievo and Nasyr-Kort. Nazran Region includes Yandare, Kantyshevo, Dolakovo, Ali-Yurt, Surkhahi and Ekazhevo.

Inter-Agency Issues

In the end of May, UN sent an inter-agency mission to Ingushetia and Chechnya. DRC took part in the mission on behalf of the international NGO community. During the presence in Ingushetia, the representatives of some UN agencies held series of field-level inter-agency meetings at UNHCR FO Nazran. Tom Trier and Zelim Yandarov, who represented DRC, informed the participants on DRC’s future programs and discussed possible ways of co-operation with the other relevant relief agencies operating in the area.

May 20 Mine-awareness meeting: (Held by UNICEF)

DRC informed the meeting on its planned Mine-Awareness (M.A.) Program that had been prepared by a group of DRC M.A. experts who visited Ingushetia in March 2000. It’s planned to start DRC Mine-Awareness Program in Ingushetia, and later-on to continue the activities in Chechnya. DRC has defined three target groups for its M.A. operation: children, men, women. Each of them has a different perception of the information. Therefore, a specially developed material is needed for each group. As to dissemination of the mine-awareness courses to children, DRC is going to involve in the project school teachers who will be bringing the knowledge to the pupils. The Program will begin in June and will last for six months. It was decided that relevant agencies would meet on a regular basis and cooperate on an integrated program of M.A. in Ingushetia and Chechnya.

UN is considering possibility to start a mine-awareness project with the Chechen NGO "Voices of Mountains". On the initial stage of the program the sides are going to highlight the present level of awareness. The second phase of the program will consist of two main parts: Education (it’s planned to target some 4,000 children in Ingushetia and around 1,000 children in Chechnya) and Public Information (production and distribution of posters, leaflets and other information materials). Five teams of specialists will be teaching children in schools. The third part of the planned project will be comprised of establishment of database for registration of the information on various incidents with mines.

Islamic Relief informed the meeting about the readiness to involve its expert to take part in the Mine-Awareness activities in Ingushetia and Chechnya.

ARD reported that it’s been involved in production and distribution of leaflets on Mine-Awareness after the first war in Chechnya. It is ready to collect information on incidents with mines in the locations where ARD staff is implementing its programs (Serzhen-Yurt, Makhketi, Chechen-Aul, etc).

Polish Humanitarian Organization (PHO) has recently started the relief program in Grozny. It plans to take part in marking of mine fields in co-operation with EMERCOM. PHO is also going to provide medical assistance to victims of mines (medicine, medical tools for treatment of the wounded).

The meeting supported the idea of distribution of leaflets on mine-awareness together with relief items.

May 21 Income Generation meeting (Headed by IOM and UNDP)

The attention of the meeting was brought to integration of Chechnya IDPs willing to reside in Ingushetia. According to the Ingush Government, as many as 70,000 Chechnya IDPs are going to reside in the Ingush Republic. The meeting agreed that it’s impossible to create jobs for the whole residual caseload. Therefore, the efforts should be focused on selection of some target groups for the future income-generation (IG)activities.

DRC briefed the participants on its IG project that has started in Ingushetia in May 2000. The Ingush Government is in the process of establishing three large development areas for Ingush IDPs from Chechnya: Goragorsk area in Malgobek Region for 14,500 IDPs, Aki-Yurt, also Malgobek Region - for 12,000 people and Nesterovskaya, Sunzha Region - for 11,000 people (including the Yuzhnyj settlement). DRC will continue provision of in-kind agricultural contributions (vegetables, seeds, paltry, cattle) for IDPs who wish to remain in Ingushetia. It is also considered reasonable to support the idea of creation of carpentry workshops, mini-brick factories and mini-bakeries for the people who will settle in the above mentioned territories.

Islamic Relief is going to explore the opportunity to start IG projects in Ingushetia.

May 21 Food-aid and Logistics meeting (Headed by WFP)

ACF is continuing the second round of food-aid distribution in Assinovskaya (17,000 beneficiaries) and Sernovodsk (15,000 beneficiaries). It is also delivering food to IDPs in Katyr-Yurt. ACF plans to deliver assistance to the villages of Shaami-Yurt, Zakan-Yurt (Achkhoi-Martan Region) and to the regional medical institutions.

People in Need (PINF) has been implementing a food-aid program in Grozny. It is examining possibilities to initiate tent and food programs in Duba-Yurt village. PINF is also collecting data material on the population of Grozny.

PHO has collected information on children from 0 to 6 years old in Grozny for distribution of food for this category of needy people. PHO is providing food assistance to hospitals in Chechnya.

At the meeting it was announced that EMERCOM was lacking food supplies in Grozny.

On May 21, DRC Tom Trier, Zelim Yandarov and Kharon Deniev met with WFP Representative in the Russian Federation, Bhim Udas and with WFP Senior Adviser on Food Security, Dieter Hannusch. Starting from July 1, WFP will take over UNHCR’s part of food distribution for host families in Ingushetia and will be responsible for food sector in both Ingushetia and Chechnya. Based on the data of the DRC on-going registration in Chechnya, it has been agreed that WFP will draw a plan of food assistance to target groups of beneficiaries in northern and southern parts of Chechnya. WFP will focus its efforts on inner IDPs, HFs and vulnerable population. As a part of its humanitarian program in Chechnya, WFP is considering possibility to use so called "Food-for-Work" approach. The idea of the project is that apart from the distribution of food items to the fixed category of beneficiaries, certain amount of food is going to be given as an in-kind payment for rehabilitation of public infrastructure of the Chechen Republic. This will not only enable to create more job places but will also make the local population more independent from humanitarian assistance.

On May 22, UN assessment mission visited northern parts of Chechnya. DRC Tom Trier and Zelim Yandarov participated in the mission on behalf of the international NGO community. In Znamenskoye village, the regional center of Nadterechny Region, the mission met with the Head of the regional administration, Mr. Akhmet Zavgaev. The main field of occupation in Nadterechny Region is agriculture (80% of the land is cultivated). There are 13 state farms in the area. The unemployment rate is very high (85%). There are 20 operational schools, 4 hospitals in the region. Each settlement has a medical point. According to Mr. Zavgaev, the local population of the region is around 52,000 persons. The inner IDP caseload in Nadterechny Region numbers some 25,000 displaced people. Out of them, 4,500 IDPs live in camps and the rest were given refuge by their relatives and host families. More than 95% of the total of the IDP caseload originate from Grozny. After the meeting with the local authorities the mission visited one of IDP tent camps in Znamenskaya called "Severni" where as many as 1,900 people found shelter. More than 1,000 of them came from Grozny. In Naurskaya, the regional center of Naursky Region, the mission met with representatives of the local authorities. Naursky Region also specializes in agriculture: wheat, viticulture, cattle breeding, etc. Most of the previously built agro-processing factories are currently destroyed. According to the regional administration, there are 22 functioning schools, a regional hospital and village medical points in the region. Officially the resident population of Naursky region is 47,000 persons. Out of them, around 4,200 persons are Russians and 4,600 persons are Meskhetian Turks. The IDP caseload in this part of Chechnya is approximately 5,000 IDPs. Both visited regions face common problems which can be divided into several sectors:

 Agriculture - lack of agricultural eduipment and agro-processing facilities, seeds for sowing, fuel.  Health - lack of medicine, absence of diagnostics and other medical equipment.  Education - some schools don’t have heating systems.  Water/Sanitation - water pipe-lines are naturally destroyed in many cases, lack of water pumps.

Meetings with IDPs in the regions, most of whom originate from Grozny, indicate that most of them plan to stay in the area during the coming winter due to the absence of social infrastructure and shelter at their residence places. There are also concerns over the volatile security situation in the Russian-controlled areas of Chechnya. IDPs in Nadterechny and Naursky Regions have been receiving substantial food assistance from the Russian EMERCOM, though during the last two weeks there were no distributions of food there. Usually the people receive a 10-day ration of food consisting of 8 kg of wheat flour, 2 tins of canned meat, 4 tins of c ondensed milk, 30 g of tea per individual (on the basis of the daily allowance of 15 RR per individual). Also half a loaf per person is being distributed there daily. Many IDPs trade some of the given food items for macaroni, potatoes, sugar and other supplementary food products. As for as the international relief assistance is concerned, so far the only organization that provided IDPs in the above mentioned regions with food-aid was OSCE. On May 23, DRC Maria Olsen had a meeting with ECHO Paul Filer and Teuvo Maatta in Moscow. During the meeting the parties discussed progress and status of DRC registration of population in Chechnya and the future co- operation between ECHO and DRC in terms of implementation of ECHO-funded programs in Ingushetia and Chechnya.

On May 24, DRC Maria Olsen met with Greg Hansen from the Institute for International Studies, Brown University (USA), and discussed the situation with humanitarian action in Ingushetia and Chechnya together with the question of security - related threats for expatriate staff of international relief agencies operating in the area. Maria Olsen gave general picture of DRC future plan of activities in Ingushetia and Chechnya.

On May 25, DRC Maria Olsen, Robert Watt, officer of the British Embassy in Moscow, and Rob Holden, the Head of the Crisis Response and Monitoring Unit (Department of International Development of the British Government) talked over DRC operations in Ingushetia and Chechnya and touched the issue of DRC co-operation with UN agencies and other NGOs. The sides analyzed the possible future situation in Chechnya and plans of actions there.

On May 25, DRC Maria Olsen met with representatives of the EU Program of Free Delivery of Food to give a more precise definition to the second phase of the contract on DRC distribution of EU food items in Ingushetia.

On May 25, the regular co-ordination meeting took place at UNHCR FO Nazran. A group of representatives of the Red Crescent of the United Arab Emirates, accompanied by some officers from the UAE Embassy in Moscow and the representatives of EMERCOM - Russia, took part at the session. The UAE mission came to Ingushetia to assess the need of the beneficiaries in Ingushetia and Chechnya for the UAE Red Crescent (RC) future program implementation in the area. The present representatives of relief agencies briefed the guests on their on-going and future projects. Upon return, RC will prepare a report on the results of the mission to the UAE Government. Islamic Relief informed the meeting that it has sufficient amount of food to continue covering Nazran Region (some 37,500 IDPs) and two camps in Sunzha Region (more than 15,000 IDPs). It was also stressed that IR had never been in low capacity of food supplies before. MSF - Belgium concentrated its efforts on Malgobek Region where they render medical as well as non-medical assistance to IDPs. Lately MSF - B has finished the 1-st cycle of deliveries. MSF - B has installed 14 shower cabins, 14 latrines, and is working on putting wooden floors in tent camps in the region. The agency’s medical teams also continue rendering medical assistance to the defined groups of beneficiaries. At the moment MSF - B doesn’t have any projects in Chechnya. UNHCR briefed the meeting on the results of the 3-d UN Assessment Mission to Chechnya.

On May 26, at DRC FO Nazran, DRC Tom Trier and Erick Petersen met with the Head of WFP Logistics Service of the Transport and Logistics Division, David Kaatrud, who came to make logistics assessments in Ingushetia. The visitor was briefed on the system of logistical support utilized by DRC in Ingushetia and received an overview of the DRC/ UNHCR /WFP joint program of food assistance in the Ingush Republic and DRC distribution of food in Chechnya.

On May 26, series of inter-agency sector meetings took place in Moscow.

Security meeting (Held by OCHA)

During the meeting it was strongly recommended that all international NGOs working in the region should step up security precautions both in offices and in residences. UNHCR has sent an expert in communication to the region who - together with UNSECOORD and local staff - is assessing the possibility for the future improvement of radio communications. OCHA reported on the Global Star test made in the region of the North Caucasus including Chechnya. The equipment which represents a portable satellite/GSM phone is going to be less expensive than its analogs and will be available in Moscow shortly. It was also mentioned that the Moscow sat-phone suppliers are capable to provide the agencies with car satellite phones which consist of a magnetic self-turning antenna and a base station. The suppliers submit the equipment with the necessary authorizations issued by the RF State Communications Control Committee.

Food sector meeting (Held by WFP)

WFP informed the meeting on the results of the UN needs assessment mission to Chechnya, described the possible introduction of the Food-for Work concept in the republic as a parallel program to food aid and shared its views on the composition of WFP food basket which consist of basic food commodities. German NGO Lazarus reported about its plan to distribute food parcels. Care-Germany plans to deliver considerable quantities of food to Chechnya. The food will be procured locally. The question of timeframe of the distribution cycles was also touched during the meeting. The idea of introduction of a monthly cycle of food distributions would have eased pressure of logistical arrangements and allowed for better control and control of deliveries.

Shelter & Relief meeting (Held by UNHCR)

UNHCR presented its plan to set up a camp for Chechnya IDPs currently staying in the train wagon settlement in Karabulak. The newly established camp will be created in the suburbs of the second biggest Ingush town. ICRC will take care of sanitation structure in the compact settlement. There have been indications that the train camp can be moved from its current location. Apart from that, the available information shows the growing trend of host family IDPs moving to new temporary accommodations. Thus, the need for more shelter will increase in Ingushetia. In Chechnya UNHCR doesn’t plan any big rehabilitation programs. The main goal, as far as shelter is concerned, is to provide shelter for people for surviving during the coming winter. Association for Aid and Relief from Japan informed the meeting that AAR has imported 12,000 blankets to be distributed through EMERCOM. AAR is continuing distribution of sanitary napkins for IDP women in Ingushetia through DRC. CPCD has been chosen for distribution of AAR’s children’s toys in its rehabilitation centers. MSF - Belgium is preparing for distribution for hygienic kits in Malgobek Region and is going to equip 26 tents in Aki-Yurt with wooden floors. International Relief Committee will distribute blankets, mattresses together with the other non-food items in Chechnya. At the initial stage of IRC’s project a target group of beneficiaries needs to be identified. There is also an intention to distribute plastic sheeting for roofing in Chechnya. IRC has plans to provide water to organized camps in Ingushetia, i.e. camp "Sputnik". UNHCR informed that its expert in water/sanitation is due to arrive soon. He will be looking into the relevant problems in the region. Islamic Relief is going to distribute sets of construction materials in Chechnya to encourage people to rebuild the houses themselves.

Protection meeting (Held by UNHCR)

UNHCR’s main protection concern is that some 15% of IDPs in Ingushetia don’t have valid identification documents. As a result, such people can’t move around or return home being under the threat of detention during verification of their identity. Very often these people have no access to humanitarian assistance. UNHCR stressed that the agency will always oppose force return of IDPs to Chechnya from Ingushetia.

On May 31, DRC Tom Trier, Zelim Yandarov and Kharon Deniev had a meeting with the Prime Minister of Ingushetia, Mr. Akhmet Malsagov. The high rank Ingushetia official was briefed on DRC operations in Ingushetia and Chechnya. Mr. Malsagov highly appreciated DRC relief efforts in the region. According to him, DRC’s registration of IDPs in Ingushetia and Chechnya is a highly valuable information that will help the Ingush Government to have a better scope of the situation with displacement in the area. The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to Danish Refugee Council for provided assistance and on behalf of the Government of Ingushetia assured the latter of the future support.

Stavropol, 4 June 2000.

For further information, please contact:

Country Program Manager Tom Trier Tel: + 7 8652 - 35 69 18 , (Stavropol), + 7 87322 2 82 70 , + 7 901 497 94 71 (Nazran) mobile + 7 8652 - 919 047 ; E-mail: [email protected]

Inter-Agency Officer Zelim Yandarov Tel: + 7 8652 - 35 69 15 , mobile + 7 901 - 498 08 24 ; E-mail: [email protected] DRC North Caucasus Ul. Lenina 458, 3-d floor 355 029 Stavropol Russian Federation Tel. +7 8652 94 39 97 Fax +7 8652 35 69 17

Earlier issues of the DRC Situation Reports can be found on the Internet at: www.reliefweb.int

Annex

Ongoing IDP Registration in Ingush Republic (as of 2/06/2000) Source: Danish Refugee Council

SUNZHENSKY DISTRICT IDPs from Chechnya

Sleptsovskaya 26 440

"Sputnik" tent camp 7 972

"Severniy" wagon camp 4 382

Nesterovskaya 8 399

Galashky 1 527

Alkhasty 1 811

Muzhichi 483

Datykh 26

Alkun 136

Troitskaya 10 258

TOTAL 61 434

KARABULACK DISTRICT IDPs from Chechnya

Karabulack 15 983

GBI 377

Kar'er 729

MTF 1 610

Promgilbasa 1 342

"Bart" tent camp 5 174

Train camp 4 407

TOTAL 29 622

NAZRAN DISTRICT IDPs from Chechnya

Yandare 7 217

Kantyshevo 7 467

Dolakovo 3 073

Ali-Yurt 2 703 Surkhahi 5 764

Ekazhevo 10 611

Altievo 5 482

Gamurzievo 4 809

Barsuki 4 703

Plievo 7 759

Nasyr-Kort 10 817

Nazran 32 786

Gazi-Yurt 951

TOTAL 104 142

MALGOBECK DISTRICT IDPs from Chechnya

Sagopshi 5 090

Verkhniye Achaluki 3 964

Nizhniye Achaluki 1 810

Sredniye Achaluki 3 154

Novy Redant 2 020

Psedakh 7 142

Inarki 1 218

Zyazikov Yurt 1 704

Aki-Yurt 4 453

Vezhary-Yurt 688

Malgobeck 16 337

Voznesenskaya 4 853

Mayskiy 1 357

Dzheirakh 7

TOTAL 53 790

GRAND TOTAL 248 988

1. Pregnant & lactating woman 3 076

2. Infants 0-12 months 5 740

3. Children 12-36 months 12 129

4. Mental/physical disabled or ill 3 969

5. Elderly (over 65) without adequate family/social support 10 020

6. Children (up to age 14) without adequate family/social support 1 328

7. Single-parent families 2 931 8. Totally dependent on humanitarian aid 209 795

GRAND TOTAL 248 988 Registration of host families in Ingushetia (as of 2/06/2000) (Free accommodation of IDPs) Source: Danish Refugee Council

Region Location HFs

Karabulak MD Karabulak 728

Total 728

Malgobek Aki-Yurt 162

Malgobek Bekovichi 2

Malgobek V. Achaluki 288

Malgobek Vezhari-Yurt 8

Malgobek Voznesenovskaya 220

Malgobek Gayrbek-Yurt 1

Malgobek Zyazikov-Yurt 56

Malgobek Inarki 117

Malgobek Malgobek 619

Malgobek N. Achaluki 132

Malgobek Novi Redant 83

Malgobek Psedakh 452

Malgobek S. Achaluki 152

Malgobek Sagopshi 263

Total 2 555

Nazran Ali-Yurt 225

Nazran Gazi-Yurt 58

Nazran Dolakovo 171

Nazran Kantishevo 366

Nazran Surkhakhi 341

Nazran Ekazhevo 418

Nazran Yandare 503

Total 2 082

Nazran MD Altievo 164

Nazran MD Barsuki 230

Nazran MD Gamurzievo 265

Nazran MD Nazran City 539 Nazran MD Nasyr-Kort 421

Nazran MD Plievo 406

Total 2 025

Sunzha Alkun 7

Sunzha Alkhasti 143

Sunzha Galashki 123

Sunzha Muzhichi 57

Sunzha Nesterovskaya 403

Sunzha Sleptsovskaya 1 115

Sunzha Troitskaya 399

Total 2 247

GRAND TOTAL 9 637