Strasbourg court to announce Chechen ruling in late February
Timur Aliyev, North Caucasus – On February 24, the European Court of Human Rights is expected to announce its ruling on the first-ever group of complaints concerning abuse of Chechens by the Russian military. This information was provided by Shakhman Akbulatov, head of the Nazran (Ingushetia) branch of the human rights organization Memorial.
Akbulatov said the action was in connection with events that took place at the start of the war, namely an “aerial bombardment of a refugee column at Shaami-Yurt; the massacre of civilians by federal forces in the Staropromyslovsky district of Grozny; and bombardment of the Kotar-Yurt village that led to civilian deaths and destruction.”
According to him, Memorial lodged these first six complaints, later merged into three cases, against the Russian authorities to the Strasbourg Court in the spring of 2000.
In the event the court rules in favor of the claimants, many Chechens who are unable to get justice in Russia will “more often and more actively” go to the Strasbourg Court, the human rights activist added.
The claimants are being represented by Kirill Koroteyev, a Moscow lawyer, and two London lawyers, Philip Leach and Bill Bowring.
According to Memorial, 15 of the several dozen new cases being prepared by the organisation have been communicated to the Russian Federation, i.e. mail exchange on them has taken place between the Russian authorities and the Strasbourg court.
The new cases involve human rights abuses such as the mass killing of inhabitants in the Novye Aldi settlement near Grozny in February 2000; torture; kidnappings; and the disappearance of civilians.
(MG/E,T) RELATED ARTICLES:
· European Court of Human Rights to hear Chechen cases (PW, 30.9. 2004)
· Malcolm Hawkes: Chechnya needs precedent at the European Court in Strasbourg PW, 10.5. 2003)
· European Human Rights Advocacy Centre (EHRAC)
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