Participants of PC's hearings: work for adaptation of militants to civilian life should be continued

Possibilities for peaceful withdrawal from the underground of the militants, who have joined the underground by ignorance, and recent rallies in Makhachkala became the main topics of the public hearings "Peacekeeping practice in North Caucasus: experience, models, methods to improve efficiency" in the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation (PCRF).

The working group of the PCRF for Caucasus headed by the journalist Maxim Shevchenko, was the initiator of the hearings held on November 29.

Despite all efforts of the government, the conflict continues to smoulder in the North Caucasus; some people even call it a "civil war", and others – "demonstrations of radicalism". This was reported by Maxim Shevchenko in his speech which opened the hearings.

The hearings paid thorough attention to peacekeeping practices in the North-Caucasian republics.

Rizvan Kurbanov, Vice Prime Minister of Dagestan and the head of Commission under the President of Dagestan on adaptation of former militant to civilian life, who contacted the participants of the hearings via videobridge, has emphasized that the militants are more often joined by the people, "who have gone to forest not because of some grievances with the authorities, but as a result of the skilful work of recruiters, agitating for jihad on the Internet."

Speaking about possible amnesty for militants, Rizvan Kurbanov has noted that the issue of amnesty is being considered, and the Dagestani leadership hopes that the issue will be heard and supported by the newly elected State Duma. On November 17, deputies of the People's Assembly of Dagestan appealed to the State Duma asking to adopt the law on amnesty for power agents and militants, who had committed crimes during counter-terrorism operations on the republic's territory.

Speaking about the practice of reconciliation in Ingushetia, Akhmed Kotiev, Secretary of the Security Council of Ingushetia, has emphasized that they should act by persuasion and not by force. According to him, explanation of the fact that, according to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, persons, who voluntarily came to law enforcement agencies, are to be exempted from liability for participating in illegal armed formations has a gross effect.

Alvi Karimov, the press secretary of the Chechen leader, has reported on the Chechen experience of adaptation of former militants and emphasized that the republic had done everything to ensure that persons, who came "out of forest", could feel full citizens. "It gave an opportunity for all people, who were involved in the activities of militants by fraud, to return home," stated Alvi Karimov.