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To Chechen children.

Paint it to Live in

As a childrens verse goes, What does it take to build a house? Just paint one to live in it. This was precisely the theme of a play game in Serlo kindergarten in Kurchaloi region. It all began with a contest named The Youth and Cultural Initiative, held in the Southern Federal District. 12 projects won the contest, including one by Malika Okunchayeva, deputy chief of the Chechen division of the Russian Childrens Fund. She suggested holding a painting contest in all preschool childrens centers in the Republic on the theme How I Wish to See My Kindergarten. And as different from the usual contests held in the republic, in this case the winning design was to go into project-making in the construction of a childrens playground in one of Chechnyas kindergartens. Children from forty kindergartens in the republic sent in their designs and the final appraisal became quite an occasion. The authors of designs from various districts were brought to Grozny, where children of the capitals kindergarten number 54 gave them an excellent winter fairy play. The best works were found to be those from the children of Kurchaloi, Naur, Shali and Grozny rural regions. It was decided that all that the children dreamed of and put on paper, would be implemented at Serlo kindergarten. As was planned originally, the military was involved in the construction. Malika Okunchayeva explained this was done expressly to eradicate a sense of fear in childrens hearts at the sight of a man in uniform. At the time a detachment of special police troops from Ryazan was deployed in the Kurchaloi region. The police troops responded enthusiastically to the idea of building a play ground for 100 children. During their work, the policemen made friends with the youngsters. The kindergarten now features a photo display of Ryazan officers holding Kurchaloi children in their arms. The Ryazan policemen were since replaced by special police units from Khabarovsk. The servicemen have taken over the job from their predecessors. At New Years eve they personally got to know the kindergarten children and brought them a beautiful Christmas tree, taking special care over that kindergarten. (More...)

Issue 351
28.02.06

Chechnya: news | arguments | facts

28 February 2006

Chechen governmen allots RUR 5 mln for children treatment

The government of the Chechen republic has allocated from its reserve fund five million roubles for medical treatment of children from the Shelkovskoi district of the republic that have been diagnosed with pseudoasthma syndrome of psychogenic nature. A part of this sum will be spent to pay for treatment course of 60 children, mainly girls from 12 to 15 years of age at the Stavropol-based clinic of borderline cases. It makes some 1.7 million roubles, Chechen Deputy Health Minister Zurab Musluyev told Itar-Tass on Monday. According to the minister, the issue of the airlifting of a girl in a grave condition to the Moscow-based Republican Childrens Clinical Hospital is currently being considered. The deputy health minister once again confirmed that there are no grounds to say that the illness of children in three settlements of the Shelkovskoi district is linked with toxic agents used by the military. None of the conducted tests has proved it. Musluyev also said that a group of specialists of the Moscow-based Serbsky Institute for Forensic Psychiatry is arriving in Chechnya for providing treatment to the children. Besides, the institutes specialists will read lectures to the republican psychotherapeutists and toxicologists in which will give recommendations how to treat the children. A total of 89 cases of illness of children and adults from the Starogladovskaya, Shelkozavodskaya and Shelkovskaya settlements in the Shelkovskoi district of Chechnya was registered in December last year. (more)

Chechen PM tenders resignation

Chechen Prime Minister Sergei Abramov has tendered his resignation, the republic's President, Alu Alkhanov, told a news conference at the Interfax central office in Moscow. "I can say that I received a letter of resignation from Sergei Borisovich [Abramov] today. We will consider it," he said. Abramov was severely injured in a road accident last November. "To my regret, Sergei Borisovich's condition does not allow him to fulfill his duties," the Chechen president said. Alkhanov, however, declined to say who might replace Abramov as Chechen prime minister. "As far as his future successor is concerned, I would not like to speak about the matter now. Time will tell," he said. (more)

Terror acts hatched for Feb 23, warded off in Chechnya

Police uncovered a big cache with firearms and explosives in Grozny, Tass learnt from Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov on Thursday. According to the minister, the cache was found in the basement of an apartment house in the Moskovskaya Street in the Chechen capital. It contained 11 homemade explosive devices, weighting ten kilos each. They looked like buckets and canisters, covered with assembly foam at the top and were packed with ball-bearings, nails and cuts of fittings, Alkhanov added. Besides, he reported that police seized seven artillery shells, prepared to plant mines, four grenade launchers, a Kalashnikov, a pistol, grenades, great quantities of firearms and ammunition as well as two night-vision devices. The minister noted that operatives managed to unearth the cache while shadowing Isa Muskievs armed gang. Incidentally, he was in charge of several armed gangs, operating in the Kurchaloi and Shali districts as well as in the city of Argun. Alkhanov emphasized that Muskiev had been on the Wanted List of the Russian Prosecutor-Generals Office for committed assassinations and terror acts. The timely detection of the gangs cache has enabled us to prevent several major terror acts, engineered by gunmen for February 23, Fatherland Defenders Day, the minister stated. (more)

Chechen member of Arbi Barayev's gang detained in Kazakhstan extradited to Russia

A Chechen militant who was a member of Arbi Barayev's gang was detained in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. "He was arrested within the framework of the agreement on interaction in fighting international terrorism between the Russian and Kazakh Interior Ministries," deputy Russian Interior Minister Arkady Yedelev told Itar-Tass. "Mukayev, 28, a native of Shalazhi, Urus-Martan District, has been on the federal wanted list for murders and assassination attempts on the life of Chechen law-enforcement personnel in Grozny's Lenin district in 2001," the deputy minister said. There is information on his involvement in the murder of first deputy prosecutor of Grozny and the attack that left senior aide of the prosecutor injured in April 2001. Also, he is suspected of shelling a car carrying Moscow police in May 2001. Two officers were killed and one was inured in the attack. Mukayev may be involved in the murder of three special task force police and the wounding of deputy head of the department for combating organized crime in June 2001. The militant will be questioned within the framework of the probe into the above criminal cases, and facts of abductions and trafficking in civilians, according to Yedelev. (more)

Free Chechnya Radio station on "Chechnya free.ru" site

You can listen to Free Chechnya Radio station from 6 AM to 12 PM Moscow time on a frequency of 594 kHz on the medium wave band and on a frequency of 171 kHz on the long wave band. The programme is created with the involvement of the Ministry for culture and mass communication of the Russian Federation.
( Free Chechnya Radio station ...)

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.
(More ...)

Chechen traditions

The book Vainakh Ethics by Edi Isaev

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.
(More ...)

Actual News from Chechnya