Chechnya History
Russia
On January 4, two off-duty policemen in Moscow beat Vladimir Sukhomlin to death in what was apparently a contract killing. Sukhomlin was a computer programmer, who had founded the Military History Forum website, Serbia.ru, and Chechnya.ru. The accused faced a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison for activities resulting in "the death of the victim because of negligence." The police did not explain why the charges had been downgraded from murder. Sukhomlin's friends and relatives believed that the murder was related to Sukhomlin's journalistic activities. ... [Read More]
58th United Nations Commission on Human Rights
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Russia
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their GovernmentThe Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their Government peacefully, and citizens exercised this right in practice through periodic, generally free and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. The Constitution establishes four branches of Government: The Presidency; the Federal Assembly made up of two houses (the State Duma and Federation Council); the Government and Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister; and the Judiciary. The Constitution gives predominance to the Presidency, and the President utilized his many powers to set national priorities and establish individual policies. After President Yeltsin's December 1999 resignation, Vladimir Putin assumed the post of acting President. In a March 2000 election, Putin was elected President. While some ... [Read More]
Russia
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Georgia (02/05)
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2004 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Russia
The Federal Government backed away from previous plans to promote a compulsory nationwide course in schools on the "Foundations of Orthodox Culture," using a textbook by that title which detailed Orthodox Christianity's contribution to the country's culture. Although schools in over 20 regions still used the book, the Ministry of Education rejected funding for another edition and further circulation of the textbook. Many religious minorities had complained about negative language describing non Orthodox groups, particularly Jews. In September, Education Minister Andrey Fursenko announced plans for a new school course, taught by laypersons, entitled "History of Religion," which would teach the history of all religions, not only Orthodoxy. The authorities had not yet introduced the course nationwide or selected a textbook for it. However, Moscow city schools have introduced a course similar to the one that the Education Minister proposed. ... [Read More]
Russia
A democratic election for the President took place in 1996 for the first time in the history of Russia as an independent state. Former President Yeltsin was reelected in a generally free and fair election. After President Yeltsin's December 31, 1999, resignation, Vladimir Putin assumed the post of acting President. In March, in an election that was generally considered to be free and fair, Putin was elected President. While the opposition and the media leveled accusations of widespread election fraud, most international observers concluded that the results of the election were valid. There were credible reports of election fraud in some locations, particularly in the Republic of Dagestan and a few other regions with a long history of falsifying votes, but there was no evidence that such abuses were systematic or that they affected the choice of the new President. Problems with voting that did occur were due to a lack of attention to proper procedure ... [Read More]
Department of State Washington File: Transcript: State Department Noon Briefing, January 12, 2000
MR. RUBIN: Well, it is our view - the United States view - that we respect the territorial integrity of Russia, including Chechnya within Russia. That has been our view. OSCE has played a role in Russia in the past - I'm sorry, in Chechnya in the past in terms of working on the elections there. So the OSCE has been involved in the discussions between Chechens and Russians about developments in Chechnya, so they have a past history of being able to operate there. It's more a question of will than mechanisms or procedural devices. ... [Read More]
Russia
Politically related violence at times resulted in death and injuries. For example, in April and May the republic of Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (in the northern Caucasus) held its first presidential elections in post-Soviet history. The campaign period and elections were filled with incidents of violence aimed at the major candidates, as well as a high number of election irregularities that strongly suggested electoral fraud. The ensuing victory of Vladimir Semenev, which was upheld by local authorities, renewed the protests that now threaten the republic's territorial integrity. On September 7, eight persons were wounded and one died as a result of injuries during clashes between supporters of Semenev and his rival Cherkessk mayor Stanislav Derev (see Sections 1.c., 3, and 5). ... [Read More]
Department of State Washington File: Transcript: State Department Noon Briefing, January 13, 2000
We do not recognize Mr. Akhmadov as the foreign minister of an independent Chechnya, but as a private citizen of the Russian Federation. The Department of State, as a matter of practice, has consistently sought out a wide variety of viewpoints from different regions of Russia. We also have a long history of meeting with all parties to a conflict. ... [Read More]
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