Actual News from Chechnya

News update

A previously unknown Chechen rebel group has claimed responsibility for a bombing that killed at least 40 people last month in the Moscow subway, in a statement posted on a radical Chechen separatist website. "Our first mop-up operation was successfully conducted on February 6 in the Moscow subway," the Gazotan Murdash group said in a statement posted on the kavkazcenter.com website, using the same word Russian forces use to describe sweeping operations carried out on Chechen villages suspected of sheltering separatist fighters. The group said its action was revenge for an atrocity allegedly committed by Russian troops in Chechnya exactly four years before the subway attack. "This was small, but good. Remember! This was revenge for Alda February 5-6, 2000, and it is only the beginning!" said the statement signed by Lom-Ali Chechensky, described as the group's alleged leader. "An eye for an eye! An injury for an injury! Freedom or death!" the statement went on. The kavkazcenter.com website said in remarks it did not know who was behind the Gazotan Murdash group. It added the group had sent the statement three times, the first time two days after the blast, and phoned the website before kavkazcenter.com agreed to publish the document. Russian troops poured into Chechnya in October 1999 after a series of deadly apartment bomb blasts in Moscow that were blamed on Chechen rebels. But the conflict has degenerated into guerrilla warfare that has killed 5,000 soldiers, according to the official toll, and thousands of civilians.
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Russia's parliament has applauded the liquidation of the infamous Chechen warlord Ruslan Gelayev as a "great achievement" on the part of federal special services. Franz Klintsevich, deputy chair of the United Russia faction in parliament's lower house, the State Duma, praised the performance of Russian law-enforcement agencies involved in the operation, saying that their next target should be fellow warlord Shamil Basayev. According to Klintsevich, Basayev is behind all recent terrorist acts in Russia, and he controls the situation in terrorist training camps and the flow of money to finance terror activities. The physical elimination of Basayev would help stabilize Chechnya, the MP argues. Gelayev's killing is a symbolic event, believes Nikolai Kovalev, former head of the Federal Security Service who now chairs the Duma Committee for War Veterans. "A whole galaxy of intractable warlords is becoming history. Of course, that's a serious achievement [on the part] of the special services," he said. Kovalev also stressed the importance of vigilance against a possible backlash. Like Klintsevich, he urged federal law-enforcers to go after Basayev, whom he described as a "symbol of international terrorism." "The liquidation of Gelayev is a natural process," said Mikhail Grishankov, second in charge of the Duma Security Committee. "It was no easy task, though," he added. Russia's special services should use all their capabilities to destroy other major Chechen warlords, such as Basayev, emphasized Grishankov. He also highlighted the necessity of disrupting the flow of money to finance Chechen rebels' terrorist activity. (more...)

Chechen history

Chechnya | Questions and answers

This pamphlet is about Chechnya , a Russian territory which has witnessed the most tragic events over the past decade. The book is the latest update on the Chechen Republic . And this is very important, since a lack of fresh and accurate information about events in Chechnya generates many distorted conceptions and rumours - both within and outside Russia . For example, that Chechen society is allegedly inherently alien to Russia , that pro-Russian elements in the republic are marginalised; and lastly, that Russian power structures are fighting the Chechen people, rather than armed bandit groups. The reality, however, is that only with the return of the legitimate authorities are villages and towns being restored, children going to school for the first time in many years, and pensioners receiving long-forgotten pensions, i.e. a social rebirth is underway. Lying ahead are a referendum on a new Chechen constitution, and parliamentary and presidential elections. These votes will be held, despite continued attempts by bandit groups and their leaders to scupper the process of normalisation in the republic, the latest terrorist act being the bombing of the republican government building. The war being waged by Chechen separatists against federal forces and more often than not against their own co-citizens is by no means a "national liberation struggle of the Chechen people", but an episode in the overall offensive by international terrorism on the fundamental principles of modern civilisation. The facts show that being a part of the Russian Federation in no way threatens the Chechen Republic 's cultural identity, the free use of its own language, and preaching Islam. On the contrary, it was during de facto "independence" from Russia that the Chechen people suffered a humanitarian tragedy on an unprecedented scale. Hostage-taking, the slave trade and plundering came to form the economic basis of the new regime, while chaos and war became the form of its political existence. We want to emphasise once more: Chechnya is part of Russia , geographically, politically and civilisation-wise. So a hypothetical triumph of radical Islamism on its territory would be anti-historical. Such a development would signify the establishment in the midst of Europe of a Taliban-like regime, with all ensuing consequences for the international community. The corporate author - journalists of the Russian Information Agency Novosti - have attempted to be as brief as possible on providing answers to the most-often aked questions (above all posed by a foreign audience) about the Chechen issue. Hence the book's title: " Chechnya : Questions and Answers". It draws heavily on information provided by various Russian ministries and departments that in one or another way are involved in normalising life in the republic.
Russian Information Agency Novosti
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Chechen economics

Argun sugar factory to get back on stream

The Argun facility that previously supplied sugar to consumers in and around the republic was all but razed by years of warfare and has lain idle over the past few years. In keeping with a federal reconstruction program for this year the facility will resume the processing of raw sugar. The plants technology director, Ayub Vagapov, is certain that by the end of this year the reconstruction will be complete and the factory will be turning out an average 260 tons of raw sugar each day. The sugar will go to the food stores, canneries and food processing plants. Fully running again, the factory will create 550 new jobs with the salary depending on the quantity of produce made. Ayub Vagapov is sure that there will be no idling now that the Chechen government has promised unfettered supplies of raw sugar. Sugar processing is a power consuming business but a nearby thermal station will provide enough electricity and vapor for the factory, which, for its part, is a real boon to the station, which will now be able to considerably boost its productivity. Right now the station is supplying electricity for the ongoing repair work. Several production workshops are standing again and the lime line will resume operation in about a months time and its warehouses are ready to take in a thousand tons of the much-needed product. Ayub Vagapov hopes that next year they will get down to the business of restoring the factorys sugar beet-processing facility and he is certain the Argun factory has a good future lying ahead.
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Issue 171
02.03.04

Chechnya: news | arguments | facts

02 Mart 2004  Call 03 and get helped
Where do you go to when you need medical help fast in Chechnya? You dial 03, just like anywhere else in Russia. The first-aid center in Grozny is one of the five you can now find in the republic. It resumed work exactly four years ago and is now tending to some 300,000 people living in the Chechen capital and in its immediate environs. Because only a few people in Chechnya still have telephones at home, people normally call for an ambulance from their workplace or from nearby army checkpoints. Last year the Grozny station handled 57,000 emergency calls. Most of its 70 staff, including 23 certified doctors, are top-notch professionals making up seven and sometimes eight emergency teams including a pediatric, cardiac and casualty ones. There are 17 ambulances in the stations car pool, which is pretty well enough. The lack of radio communication is a big problem though, but the government promised to supply the missing gear already before this year is out. This would serve the dual purpose of providing quicker service and improving the efficiency of ambulance service. The thing is that several calls may alternatively come from one and the same district and if the dispatcher fails to get in touch with a departed ambulance, he will have to wait until they get back to send them out again which is very time consuming affair. Secondly, ambulances with radios ensure better security for the medical personnel. Even without radios, however, the Grozny station is doing a great job. The teams take a mere 3 minutes to get packed up and going. The ambulances need maximum 10 minutes to reach callers within the city limits and maximum 20 minutes to get to patients living in the city suburbs.
(more News from Chechnya...)

01 Mart 2004  Akhmad Kadyrov calles on Chechens to participate in Russian Presidents elections
Chechenya's President Akhmad Kadyrov has called on Chechens to take an active part in the Russian President's elections on March 14, Kadyrov's press service said. "On Friday the Chechen President discussed the election issues with representatives of the executive and power structures," the press service reported. According to Kadyrov, the future of the Republic much depends on the forthcoming elections, therefore everyone should come to polling-stations and vote "even against all candidates". Kadyrov gave much attention to security measures during the election campaign. On his part, chairman of the Chechen Central Election Commission Abdul-Kerim Arsakhanov reported that 424 polling stations were open in the republic and they received the required number of ballot papers.
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01 February 2004  Abdulatipov sees russias historical mission in preserving unity of its peoples
Ramazan Abdulatipov, chairman of the Assembly of the Peoples of Russia, believes that the Russian Federation should set up an executive body responsible for the implementation of the nationalities policy concept, he said delivering the main report at the third congress of the Assembly. "There must also be the post of commissioner for the rights of the various peoples," said Abdulatipov. In his view, the Assembly, set up in 1998, has one major goal - "to gather together Russia's peoples and lands." He indicated that the concept of nationalities state policy boils down to bringing together the peoples residing in a multi-ethic state. "The principal historical mission of Russia is to preserve the unity of our peoples. This is the most patriotic mission," Abdulatipov emphasized. He added that equality of each people regardless of its numbers is the democratic template for nationalities policy. "There will be no prosperity without this," believes the assembly's chairman. Speaking of Chechnya, Abdulatipov expressed the view that the tragedy of that republic "had no bearing on the issue of nationalities from the outset."

Russia - Chechnya

Chechen culture

Efforts at restoring theater art in Chechnya are going on. After a 3-year stay in Anapa, Krasnodar and Nalchik , members of the state dramatic troupe have returned to Chechnya . They number 26 and despite the lack of their own stage, they have performed two new spectacles of the children fairy tale, Brave Titiva and the play of the classic Chechen literary giant, Khalid Oshayevs Selset. The spectacles were staged by an old actor of the theater, peoples artist of the Chechen-Ingush ASSR, Ban-Ali Vakhidov. He has with the new crop of artists brought back the best spectacles of years gone by such as Bozh Ali by Abdul-Hamid Hamiyev and the Marriage by Nikolai Gogol. The well known artists, Dagun Omayev, Nelya Khodjiyeva, Khamid Azayev, and Raya Isayeva, have remained in the theater. They made the theater famous by their creativity. New names are emerging however and last season, 6 new artists were recruited. Chechen actors are also being trained in the Moscow Institute of culture and arts. Chechen officials believe that graduates from theNakhi studio of the institute will form the nuclei of the youth theater, planned to be opened in Grozny. The Chechen culture ministry is taking steps to reopen the Russian dramatic theater bearing the name of Lermontov, founded in 1938.Most of its actors who left Chechnya in the 90s are anxious to return and negotiations are already going on with the director of the Russian dramatic theater I Gurevic and several leading actors.
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Chechen tarditions

The book "Vainakh Ethics" by Edi Isaev is an utmost important work at a time when the life in Chechnya is returning to normal. Edi Isaev is a historian, Professor at the Chechen State University, writer and publicist directs his book to youth. In introduction he emphasizes: "The norm of Vainakh ethics is the code of wise truths of people that reflects their ideals." The book is educational. It contains the ideas on ethics by thinkers of various people and various times from Epicurus and Confucius A.S. Makarenko and L.N.Toltoi. The second chapter is devoted to ethic norms of Chechens. The third chapter considers in detail traditional family ethic code. The final chapter is devoted to Islamic ethic norms. Materials from the book Vainakh Ethics by Edi Isaev is devoted to customs and traditions of Chechens.
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Chechen cuisine

"The Chechens, like the rest of the highlanders, avoid extremes in their eating and drinking habits. What they usually eat is chureks or corn bread with mutton lard spread on it, and wheat stew with lard in it; water is their basic refreshment." "...Unleavend wheat or barley bread baked on charcoal, milk and cheese constitute their daily menu; meat is eaten, very rarely, by the richest of the Chechens." That was written about the Chechen eating habits in the 19th century. And it was not until the late 19th century that many vegetables grown in Europe - tomatoes, cabbage, radish - had found their way to the kitchen gardens of mountainous Chechnya. Chechen farming units have, since times immemorial, been self-sufficient, with only spices and sweetmeats being bought at the market. And, although they have become familiar with the cuisines of many other ethnic communities, the Chechen women cherish the very special culinary traditions of their own.
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