Human rights activists find the idea of independent NCFD Ombudsman "unripe"

The issue of potential appointment of Ombudsman in the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) may be raised at the nearest meeting of Russian President with human rights defenders to take place on May 19, said Valentin Gefter, a member of the Board at the President of the Russian Federation for Promotion of Civil Society Institutions and Human Rights. In his opinion, we need a certain concept on how to address the problem of human rights observance in Northern Caucasus; however, the idea of NCFD Ombudsman, according to his version, is under-formulated and under-discussed. Other human rights activists partly agree.

The situation with human rights in Northern Caucasus is a repeated concern of Russian and foreign human rights activists. In the opinion of the international Human Rights Watch, the level of human rights respect in Northern Caucasus, first of all, in Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia, is critically low.

"There is hope that the issue of the NCFD Ombudsman will be discussed this Wednesday at the meeting with President. It is important that the problem of human rights and protection of human rights activists is discussed in a complex way, and in a broader sense - on disappearances and other episodes, and that some concept is offered on what to do in the NCFD and its separate territories. The talk with the President should be constructive, not just 'Babylon cry'," Valentin Gefter, who is also director of the Autonomous Non-Commercial Organization (ANCO) "Institute of Human Rights" and a member of the Board of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to his version, so far, the idea of appointing the NCFD Ombudsman is under-developed and under-discussed. "And it is not linked directly with control over power agents. As to the meeting with General Public Prosecutor Chaika last August after known events (murder of human rights defender Natalia Estemirova, - comment of the "Caucasian Knot"), when members of Public Chamber met him, the topic was a bit different," said Mr Gefter and explained that many various offers were moved there on protection of human rights activists and struggling against different other violations in Chechnya.

"First of all, the point was that the inquiry into such cases like Estemirova's murder should run at the minimized influence of local power structures," he said.

However, Valery Khatazhukov, head of the Caucasian Public Human Rights Centre, the regional branch of the Movement "For Human Rights" believes that until now the institution of Ombudspersons in Russia "has not been properly launched."

He noted that formation of the NCFD had also assumed solution of certain problems. "But so far, we see no real results. Probably, we need more time. Should Ombudspersons be a really efficient force in other regions, then, probably, Ombudsman in the NCFD could be reasonable," Mr Khatazhukov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Tatiana Lokshina, a researcher for the Human Rights Watch and chair of the board of the "Demos" Centre, said that she had heard from activists of Russian human rights organizations about the idea.

"It's all linked with a grave situation with human rights in Northern Caucasus. Certainly, probably, such post could be helpful. But, actually, apparently, it would be better to force the existing structures to work properly," she believes.