The 'black hole' of Chechnya by Shohdy Naguib [from Moscow] Al-Ahram Weekly Online : 12 - 18 June 2003 (Issue No. 642) http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2003/642/in6.htm
...The nine-year Chechen conflict can be described as the Russian "black
hole" which is sucking up funds, lives and hopes for a better life, while discharging at the same dazzling rate xenophobia, radicalisation of politics, corruption and crime. In other words, if transparency can be regarded as the opposite of corruption, then this conflict is tantamount to a powerful smoke generator that is suffocating the nascent Russian democracy. Placing this independence war within the framework of the global "war on terror" was a lucky strike for the Russian president and the likely doom for the 200 years of struggle for self-determination by this proud nation. ---- It is both an independence war AND a struggle against terrorism. The problem with Chechen independence is that the only time it has been tried, from 1996-1999 under Maskhadov, Chechnya became an Islamist gangster state that destablized its neighbors and which was used as a base to attack Russia. It is for this reason that both Chechen independence and Maskhadov are unacceptable in the eyes of the Kremlin (and me).
The alleged link between Chechnya's rebels and Al-Qa'eda raises the question of whether that link exists despite, or because of, Russia's anti-terrorist operation in Chechnya. --- Mujaheedin have been operating in Chechnya since the mid-90s. Shamil Basayev and Khattab attacked Dagestan in 1999, before the current war, allegedly having received $20 million from abroad in order to do so, and with the express goal of creating a pan-Caucasian Islamist state under Shariah law. Therefore, though the "anti-terrorist operation" may certainly be exacerbating things (though what else could Russia realistically do? Any suggestions?), it can hardly be accused of having created the situation. --- And it certainly cannot justify the horrendous scale of atrocities that has befallen its people. --- True. Unfortunately, however, Russia has almost no control over its army. These are not (for the most part) state-sanctioned atrocities: These are, e.g., a bunch of shell-shocked conscripts retaliates to the death of one of one of their friends by getting drunk and shooting up a house. --- Staging a referendum on the future of the republic and the adoption of a new constitution against such a troubled background could not have been more inappropriate. The 96 per cent of votes which were cast "in favour of peace and against the separation" are viewed by most international observers as irrelevant and as having nothing to do with durable peace in the region. --- I'm undecided on the referendum and consitution. I think they're probably good in the long run, as they at least give some formal basis for a return to "normal" society. Moreover, they're likely to set the ground for a Chechen elite that is not Mafia. Indeed, all the assurances of stability in Chechnya issued by the Kremlin-backed administration of Ahmad Kadyrov are regularly truncated with news of stinging attacks by the rebels. --- Actually, armed attacks on federal forces are pretty dinky at this point. Three-quarters of Russian losses took places in the first year of the war. --- The frequent use of suicide bombers, particularly women, by the Chechen separatists further validates the Kremlin's claims of the "foreign hand" which dares to meddle in Russia's internal affairs. Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov, reporting to President Vladimir Putin, recently said, "This was brought to us from abroad. There were previously no suicide attackers in the Chechen conflict." --- This is true. This is a foreign import. --- The Western guests who recently attended the international summit in St Petersburg during its splendid tercentenary anniversary did not say a single word to their host regarding the situation in the war-torn North Caucasus. Nobody wanted to spoil the party. Yes they did. They said that they supported Russian policy.
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The miserable human rights record in Chechnya will, sooner or later, surface at the highest diplomatic level. The upcoming trial of Ahmad Zakaev -- official envoy of Chechen President-elect Aslan Maskhadov -- in London will probably trigger this. He is currently facing extradition in England and his defence is based upon accusations aimed at Russia regarding massive human rights violations in Chechnya. In an interview with Radio Liberty he said, "For three or four years now, our leadership has been seeking the creation of an international committee to investigate these horrible crimes, followed by an international tribunal to bring the war criminals to trial." Such an approach may well turn the tables on the Kremlin. ----
This assumes Zakayev is innocent. I have no idea whether he is or not, but kidnap/slave-trade victims say he was personally involved.
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