Russian Public Chamber demands inquiry into persecution of Muslims in North Ossetia and Dagestan

Mass arrests of Muslims in North Ossetia and beating of believers in Dagestan are provocations on the eve of the 2012 presidential election in Russia and the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. This was stated in the statements of the Working Group of the Public Chamber (WGPC) for promoting social dialogue and civil society institutions in the Caucasus.

Let us remind you that detentions of activists of the Muftiyat of North Ossetia occurred in the evening on May 31, after the special operation, in which David Murashev was killed. He was suspected of murdering Shamil Dzhigkaev, the Ossetian writer and Dean of the Department of Philology of the North-Ossetian State University, whose body was discovered with chopped wounds in the neck.

"The detentions were committed in rude form, with planting firearms and drugs to the detained activists of the Muslim community of North Ossetia. The Imam of Vladikavkaz Mosque, young Muslims, including Islamic bloggers and students of republic's higher schools were detained. The detentions took place with violations of the law and crimes against human rights; they were of violent nature, with use of physical force, injuries and insults of the dignity and religious feelings of the believers," says the statement of the WGPC received by the "Caucasian Knot".

The paper especially highlights the lack of information about the future of 16 detainees and expresses concern about possible application of torture and pressure to them in order to obtain "confessions" on the Dzhigkaev's murder case.

"Such methods of 'war on terror', as practice shows, never give expected results, but just worsen the already very complicated situation in the Caucasus. The attempt to squeeze young Muslims out of the legal field on trumped-up charges can become a catalyst for worsening the already complicated situation," runs the document signed by Maxim Shevchenko, head of the WGPC.

Same alarm of the WGPC for development of social dialogue and civil society institutions in the Caucasus was caused by the beating of believers and closure of a mosque in Dagestan.

Let us remind you that on May 13 in the village of Sovietskoe, Makaramkent District of Dagestan, during the Friday prayer, policemen detained about a hundred believers. After delivery to the local ROVD (District Interior Division), according to the detainees, policemen kept mocking at them and beating them; and many detainees had their beards and hair half-shaved and half-cut by force.

"Being ignorant of qualitative capabilities of modern mass media, employees of the local rural ROVD began shifting the blame on parishioners themselves and managed to close the mosque, which became the last straw of society's patience. The incident received broad resonance and naturally blew up the media and the blogosphere," says the statement of the WGPC.

Attention was also drawn to the fact that on June 1 in Makhachkala a spontaneous rally against persecution of Muslims took place, which, according to various estimates, brought together some 3-5000 persons.