Chechnya War

PRM will give priority to those proposals from NGOs with a proven track record in IDP assistance programs in Ingushetiya and Chechnya since the current war began in fall 1999. PRM believes the NGOs already experienced in working under the difficult circumstances required for implementing humanitarian activities in the Northern Caucasus will stand the best chance of being funded. Selected NGOs, of course, must meet the financial and accounting requirements of the Bureau in order to receive an award. ... [Read More]

Russia

During the year, the Government took a number of measures to consolidate the levers of political power in the hands of President Putin. The October 25 arrest of Khodorkovsky removed a powerful and wealthy critic of the administration of President Putin who had become increasingly active in providing financial assistance to opposition political parties, as well as to NGOs (see Section 4). Khodorkovsky, who was charged with fraud in connection with privatization of industrial assets in the 1990s, was the latest of a number of wealthy "oligarchs" who represented centers of potential political and media opposition to the President. In the view of many human rights observers, Khodorkovsky's arrest was intended as a warning to other oligarchs against involvement in political affairs and independent financial support of civil society. Whatever circumstances led the authorities to move against magnates such as Khodorkovsky, Boris Berezovskiy and Vladimir Gusinskiy-- the latter two ... [Read More]

Russia

Authorities attributed bombing incidents in Dagestan and several cities in southern areas of the country to Chechen rebels.Government forces and Chechen fighters have used landmines extensively in Chechnya and Dagestan since August 1999 (see Section 1.g.); there were many civilian landmine casualties in Chechnya during the year. b. Disappearance There were reports of government involvement in politically motivated disappearances in Chechnya; however, there were fewer reports of kidnapings than in previous years. The NGO Memorial claimed that federal military forces detained thousands of persons from Chechnya. Some of these persons disappeared, but most were released, often after their relatives paid a bribe. Memorial estimated that the number of individuals unaccounted for was somewhere between several hundred and a thousand. Former Presidential Representative for Human Rights in C ... [Read More]

Progress Report on the Global War on Terrorism

Since September 11, 2001, the FBI has received and assessed the credibility of approximately 3,600 threats to the United States. The National Threats Warning System has issued 62 threat warnings, 55 Be On the Lookout (BOLO) alerts, and 82 Intelligence Bulletins. These warnings are disseminated to more than 18,000 state and local law enforcement agencies in the United States, over 60 Federal agencies and subcomponents, and all U.S. Attorneys. ...

Success in the global war against terrorism depends on the actions of a powerful coalition of nations maintaining a united front against terror. Over 170 nations continue to participate in the war on terrorism by taking terrorists into custody, freezing terrorist assets and providing military forces and other support. International organizations are becoming more agile, adapting their structures to meet changing threats. We support the actions of our partners as they facilitate international, regional, and local solutions to the challenge of terrorism. ... [Read More]

2004 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Russia

International agreements permit persons with outstanding warrants from other former Soviet states to be detained for periods of up to 1 month while the Prosecutor General investigates the nature of outstanding charges against the detainee. This system was reinforced informally, but effectively, by collegial links among senior law enforcement and security officials in the various republics of the former Soviet Union. Human rights groups continued to allege that this network was employed to detain opposition figures from the other former Soviet republics without legal grounds. According to Memorial, some detainees were kept in custody for more than 1 month. For example, a teacher of Arabic from Uzbekistan was detained in Saratov region and spent a year in custody from 2002 to 2003 before the authorities decided not to carry out the Uzbek warrant of extradition. He was then released, but abducted in July and transported back to Uzbekistan where he remained in jail at year's end. ... [Read More]

Russia

Internet service providers are required to install, at their own expense, a device that routes all Internet traffic to an FSB terminal. Those providers that do not comply with the requirements face either loss of their licenses or denial of their license renewal. While SORM-2 framers claim that the regulation does not violate the Constitution or the Civil Code because it requires a court order, right to privacy advocates state that there is no mechanism to ensure that a warrant is obtained before the FSB accesses private information. There appears to be no mechanism to prevent unauthorized FSB access to Internet traffic without a warrant. ... [Read More]

Terrorist Designation Under Executive Order 13224

The United States also underscores its strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia, a partner in the war on terrorism. We urge Russia to respect Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity while continuing to cooperate with Georgia and the United States on the issue of Chechen fighters and international terrorists in the Pankisi Gorge. ... [Read More]

(E) Eurasia Overview

Several Central Asian states also concluded counterterrorism agreements in 2000. Uzbekistan in early May signed an agreement with India that included an extra-dition treaty and mutual assistance in criminal investigations with an eye toward counterterrorist operations. In June, Kazkahstan and Kyrgyzstan separately reached bilateral agreements with China to cooperate on counterterrorist matters. In October and November, Uzbekistan also signed agreements on counterterrorism cooperation with Turkey, China, and Italy. ... [Read More]

August

To facilitate and provide support for the sustainable return and reintegration of refugees and displaced persons in their pre-war communities, thereby helping to re-establish the basic social and economic life in war-affected communities ...

Improve the health and well-being of the war-affected Chechen populations by providing habitable shelter, potable water, adequate sanitation facilities, educational opportunities, community development and psycho-social rehabilitation ... [Read More]