Chechnya marks anniversary of CTO cancellation

Today, the Chechen Republic marks the Day of Peace, established by the regional leadership in 2009, after the abolition of the counterterrorist operation (CTO) regime in the territory of the republic. Residents of Chechnya treat the anniversary of the CTO abolition as one of the major holidays, but note that the celebrations are mostly of official character, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

Today, in Grozny, law enforcement officers laid flowers at the memorial to the persons fallen in the fight against terrorism on the square in front of the Central Mosque, and local officials – to the obelisk of Akhmat-Hadji Kadyrov located in the territory of the Memorial Fame Complex. Also today, a festive motor rally was organized. In the evening, the theatre-concert hall of Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, hosted a solemn meeting, which ended in a festive concert, the RIA "Novosti" reports.

Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of the region, said at the solemn meeting that during the time that elapsed after the CTO cancellation in Chechnya, "the region has made great successes in the development of economy and social sphere." "One of the main achievements was the republic's return into to the Russia's legal environment," the TASS quotes Mr Kadyrov as saying.

Residents of Chechnya note today in social networks that the day of CTO cancellation really became "a holiday of peace" for residents of the region. However, they add that at organizing the celebrations of the Day of Peace, the authorities disregard the interests of ordinary citizens.

The "Caucasian Knot" was informed by a resident of Grozny that the majority of participants of the solemn meeting and the festive concert in Grozny was made up of officials, public leaders and invited guests. Ordinary people were "quite scanty" there, he noted in his comment on the news about the celebrations of the Day of Peace in Chechnya, posted in the "VKontakte" social network.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.