“Memorial” Human Rights Center “Migration Rights” Network Edited by S. A. Gannushkina ON THE SITUATION OF RESIDENTS OF CHECHNYA IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION June 2004 - June 2005 Moscow 2005 Этот материал выпущен МОО ПЦ "Мемориал", который внесен в реестр, предусмотренный ст. 13.1.10 ФЗ "Об НКО". Мы обжалуем это решение. Supported by the European Commission Based on the materials gathered by the «Migration Rights» Network The «Memorial» Human Rights Center «Civic Assistance» Committee S.A. Gannushkina — Head of the «Migration Rights» Network Chairperson of the «Civic Assistance» Committee L.Sh. Simakova—compiler of the report Other contributors : A. Barakhoev E. Burtina S. Magomedov E. Riabinina Sh. Tangiev The «Migration Rights» Network has 56 offices providing free legal assistance to forced migrants, 5 of them are found in Chechnya and Ingushetia [www.refugee.memo.ru] In Moscow the lawyers of the «Migration Rights» Network use the non-profit «Civic Assistance» Committee as their base [www.refugee.ru] Circulation free of charge ISBN 5-93439-177-1 © S. A. Gannushkina, 2005. 2 Этот материал выпущен МОО ПЦ "Мемориал", который внесен в реестр, предусмотренный ст. 13.1.10 ФЗ "Об НКО". Мы обжалуем это решение. CONTENTS I. Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................5 II. The Rising Wave of Xenophobia in Russia.........................................................................................7 III. Fabrication of Criminal Cases of Islamic Extremism........................................................................11 IV. Living Conditions and the Problem of Security of the Internally Displaced Persons in the Chechen Republic.................................................................................. .......................................14 V. The Situation in which People from Chechnya Living in the Republic of Ingushetia Found Themselves after the Attack at Nazran and Karabulak on 21 June 2004................................................23 VI. The Situation of Chechnya Residents in Russia’s Regions...............................................................32 VII. How Internally Displaced Persons are Forced to Return to Chechnya............................................39 VIII. Imitation of Counterterrorist Struggle.............................................................................................42 IX. Abduction of Civilians in the Zone of Armed Conflict in the Northern Caucasus........................................... .......................................................................................................53 X. In Lieu of a Conclusion. Svetlana Gannushkina’s Speech in Strasbourg on 21 March 2005 at the Round Table on the Political Situation in the Chechen Republic organized by the PACE Political Committee (abridged) ................................64 XI. Appendices Appendix 1: Interview with A. Gross, deputy of the Swiss parliament................................................68 Appendix 2: Expert opinion supplied by S.A. Pashin, Cand. Sc. (Law), on Order No. 870 of the Ministry of the Interior of 10.09.2002...........................................................71 Appendix 3: Application of M.Kh. Khamzatova living in the Zumsoy Village to the «Memorial» Human Rights Center.............................................................................................75 Appendix 4: Reply to an enquiry of one of the European Migration Services.....................................77 Appendix 5: INTERFAX. President Alu Alkhanov on criminal cases.................................................82 Appendix 6: Natural calamity in the Zumsoy village and murder of administration Head A.A. Iangul’baev.................................................................................83 Appendix 7: Raid of Borozdinovskaya village and its consequences...................................................87 Appendix 8: S.A. Gannushkina. Once more on the Borozdinovskaya village. It is investigation or a search for instigators? .......................................................................................90 3 Этот материал выпущен МОО ПЦ "Мемориал", который внесен в реестр, предусмотренный ст. 13.1.10 ФЗ "Об НКО". Мы обжалуем это решение. List of Abbreviations CC — Criminal Code CR — Chechen Republic CTA — Centers of Temporal Accommodation of IDP on the territory of Russia DC — Detention Center DM RF — Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation DMS — District Militia Station FMS RF — Federal Migration Service of the Russian Federation FSS RF — Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation HRC — Human Rights Center IDP — Internally Displaced Persons MA — Migration Administration MAIA — Main Administration for Internal Affairs MES RF — Ministry for Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation MIA — Main Intelligence Administration MI RF — Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Federation MTS — Militia Traffic Service (Traffic Police) PTS — Places of Temporal Settlement of IDP in Russia’s regions RAOC — Regional Administration for Fighting Organized Crime RI — Republic of Ingushetia ROHNCR — Regional Operational Headquarters for the North Caucasian Region SMD — Special Militia Detachment (Riot Police) PACE — Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe P&V Service — Passport and Visa Service 4 Этот материал выпущен МОО ПЦ "Мемориал", который внесен в реестр, предусмотренный ст. 13.1.10 ФЗ "Об НКО". Мы обжалуем это решение. I. Introduction This is the fourth annual report on the situation of Chechnya residents in Russia. Our three previous reports in Russian, English, and German can be found on the site of the «Migration Rights» Network of the «Memorial» Human Rights Center [www.refugee.memo.ru]. The Russian-language edition and its translation into English appeared in printed form published by R. Valent Publishers in Moscow in the summer of 2002, 2003, and 2004. Just as in the three previous years today we deem it necessary to tell about the conditions in which people from the Chechen Republic are living on its territory and elsewhere in Russia, the Republic of Ingushetia in the first place. This republic is Chechnya’s closest neighbor, both geographically and culturally. Since 1999 it has been the only place where Chechens believed themselves to be safe. We regret to say that the situation on its territory changed to the worse. In 2002 the authorities launched a campaign of closing down tent camps and driving their inhabitant back to Chechnya. By the summer of 2004 not single tent camp was left in Ingushetia. After the fighters’ raid at Nazran and Karabulak on 21 June 2004 the general situation in Ingushetia changed. We cannot say that all people from Chechnya were treated as suspects. President of Ingushetia Murat Ziazikov, for example, publicly promised that the RI leaders would continue insisting that the Chechen refugees would be allowed to go back to Chechnya of their own free will and that no pressure would be applied to them. The RI president went on to say that he was resolved to carry out investigation of the June events strictly within the law and that the Chechen variant would not be repeated (no masked people, no cars with clouded windows and without number plates, no disappearance of people). Still in the first three weeks after the June events 2000 refugees left Ingushetia for Chechnya; in a year’s time the number of Chechen refugees in Ingushetia dropped by half. Being fully aware of the favorite methods of the law-enforcement bodies people did not trust the authorities, and rightly so. In the time that has elapsed since our 2004 report the level of lawlessness in Ingushetia (abductions, arbitrary actions of the authorities) has nearly reached the level we can observe in Chechnya. In other regions of Russia people from Chechnya remained in an adverse situation because of the mounting level of xenophobia and Islamophobia that took place against the background of the worsening social conditions brought about by the changes in the social laws and the newly adopted Housing Code. Russian citizens are disorientated by the incessant changes of the basic laws, lack of stability, and worsening social conditions. Discontent breeds aggression and the desire to find an enemy; the public is frightened by a series of terrorist acts. The monstrous terrorist act in Beslan added oil to the already smoldering anti- Chechen sentiments; certain politicians exploited the tragedy to fan ethnic enmity and the more or less extinguished conflict between Ossets and Ingushes. This led to an unprecedented reign of violence in Russia in the context of total impunity of the law-enforcement bodies. The fight against terror, which the law-enforcement bodies take for a justification of their violations of legal and moral laws is developing into a sort of a game with human lives at stake. 5 Этот материал выпущен МОО ПЦ "Мемориал", который внесен в реестр, предусмотренный ст. 13.1.10 ФЗ "Об НКО". Мы обжалуем это решение. This explains why we have to write about violations of human rights of the people living in the Chechen Republic once more—this is one of the methods of fighting these practices. We would not want our readers to think that we deliberately ignore the new realities developing in the Chechen Republic. We all know that those who shouldered the responsibility for them are risking their lives. We rejoice at cultural achievements in Chechnya and do our best to contribute to them.