Chechen human rights activist says he was beaten, tortured by policeRuslan Isayev, North Caucasus - In late July members of a pro-Moscow Chechen law enforcement agency reportedly detained in Malgobek, Ingushetia, a worker of a Chechen human rights organisation and released him only after severe beating and torture.
Said Zakriyev, who works with the Chechen Committee of National Salvation, was accused of crimes he had not committed, namely the participation in illegal armed formations and subversive activities. The four days he had spent in a cellar of the Interior Ministry department in Grozny have shown that detainees are subject not only to abuses but also to torture.
Today, on July 5, the chairman of the Chechen Committee of National Salvation Ruslan Badalov told Prague Watchdog that he was just writing a letter to the Chechen Interior Affairs Department (UVD) in Grozny in an effort to find out more details of the alleged police brutality.
Zakriyev said that on the second day they transported him with handcuffs and a mask on to Grozny where beating and torture started. "Two broad-shouldered started beating me. I guess one of them was Russian as he spoke Russian very well. The second one has not uttered a word," Said described the situation.
The two beat him severely. Afterwards, giving him a short break, the guys started torturing the human rights activist. They put some wires to his handcuffs behind his back and connected them with a hand-driven electric generator. By means of torture they wanted him to confess to being a vahhabist and putting up armed resistance to the federal forces. Zakriyev has not signed the documents as he was aware that they wanted him to take responsibility for things he had committed.
Upon his arrest, Zakriyev submitted a document showing that he works at the Chechen Committee of National Salvation - but he was laughed at. Later on, a police commander told him during investigation that he was fed up human rights activists and other people of that sort, who do not let force structures to carry out their work smoothly.
Having spent four days in custody, Said Zakriyev was released on July 30. He was told that he would be back at the first opportunity. (T) |
