Social moderators initiate discussion of bullying in militia of Stavropol Territory

On January 31, Pyatigorsk plans to host a roundtable with participation of public, mass media and human rights activists with the aim to launch public control over the course of investigations into human rights violations committed by law enforcers of the Predgorny ROVD (District Interior Division) of the Stavropol Territory.

The discussion on the topic "Crime without Punishment: Vyacheslav Merekha Case" will be held by the interregional initiative group of citizens. The roundtable is organized within the framework of the public campaign initiated by the Community of Social Moderators.

According to social moderators of Southern Russia, at night on December 15, 2010, Vyacheslav Merekha, a resident of the village of Kalaborka, was detained near his house in the state of alcoholic intoxication by militiamen of the above ROVD and taken to the militia station, "where he was subjected to moral and physical pressure."

"As a result of applied violence, Vyacheslav Merekha was taken to hospital. Currently, he had undergone three most serious surgeries; the man has actually become an invalid," says the press release received by the "Caucasian Knot".

As noted by the organizers of the roundtable, one month has already passed after those events, "but the criminal case was opened only on 28.12.2010, but on the fact of the crime, and not against specific individuals, who are known."

According to Natalia Spiridonova, Merekha's cousin, relatives were forced to independently make a video record of Vyacheslav's narration about what happened. "We made it only because we couldn't force an inspector to come to the dying person; and we feared that he would die without telling the story," she said.

According to the Community of Social Moderators, currently they have sent official appeals to all the authorized instances at the levels of the region of the Caucasian Mineral Waters, Stavropol Territory, North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD) and the Russian Federation: to respective Ombudspersons, Prosecutor's Office, MIA and public boards at law enforcement bodies. "The incident has caused wide public resonance; and numerous publications in Internet editions are the evidences," the moderators note.

The roundtable will start at midday on January 31 in the conference hall of the "Intourist" Hotel in Pyatigorsk.