Rally held in KBR to commemorate deportation of Balkars

In Nalchik, the capital of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), at the Memorial to victims of repressions of the Balkar people, a memorial rally took place, attended by about three hundred persons. During the event, calls were pronounced to start collecting signatures under petition in favour of self-determination of the Balkar nation.

The rally began with a memorial prayer, or dua, in memory of deportation victims of Balkars on March 8, 1944.

Ruslan Babaev, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Elders of the Balkar nation, reminded in his speech that Balkars were accused of treason and complicity with fascist troops. He stated that these accusations were ungrounded. "Saying that the deported nations were tortured means saying nothing. It was hell," said the speaker.

He continued by saying that the Balkar people returned and revived. Later, the law on rehabilitation was adopted, which, according to Babaev, was never enforced. Under that law, back at Yeltsin's time, five billion US dollars were allotted from the federal budget to the Balkar people for revival. However, the money never reached the people, but, according to the speaker, was "sawn" among federal and local bureaucrats. Babaev said that the Board of Elders has documents to prove this fact.

"We need to collect about 40,000 signatures," he said. "We demand self-determination as a part of Russia. We'll live in one street, in neighbourhood, but every nation will have its own kitchen," he said and added that should Russian authorities refuse, then, it is necessary to appeal to European structures, including the European Court of Human Rights.

Mr Babaev said that should they fail to collect signatures and submit documents, he would terminate his political activities.

Buzdzhigit Uyanaev, a resident of the village of Khabaz, spoke about the socio-economic situation of the two Balkar villages in the Zolskiy District - Khabaz and Kichmalki. According to his story, grasslands and pastures had been given into ownership to the Zolskiy Municipal District and are granted into lease to local residents through auctions. Many villagers have no money to take land into lease.

Bakhau Taumurzaev, one of the hunger strikers in Moscow in Manege Square, told that when in Moscow the group of protesting Balkars was supported by members of the Karachai Diaspora in Moscow; while, according to his story, the protesters received no help from high-ranking Balkars in power.

Let us note here that, according to Anuar Chechenov, Chairman of the Parliament of Kabardino-Balkaria, at the domestic level there are no interethnic problems in the KBR.