18:55, 26 August 2004

Turkish citizen deported from Russia for second time

Hajji Bayram Bolat, who arrived in Kabardino-Balkaria from Turkey on August 23, was deported yesterday, August 25. Hajji Bayram had been given a Kabardino-Balkarian residential permit for the period until 2008 by a decision of the Nalchik City Court.

Valery Khatazhukov, Director of the Kabardino-Balkarian Human Rights Center, thinks court decisions and prosecutors' view mean nothing for the republican department of the Federal Security Service (FSB). Having spent 43 hours under illegal arrest in an airport, Hajji Bayram was sent back to Istanbul. FSB officers explained it by "instructions from Moscow". Asked who issued these instructions and what the grounds for them were, they did not say anything.

Iskhak Kuchukov, Hajji Bayram Bolat's lawyer, told a press conference yesterday, August 25, he would send new materials to the Strasbourg court. "We were going to close this case peacefully. You know, Hajji Bayram was returning to his historic homeland for permanent living not as a guest. But now the case of Hajji Bayram Bolat vs. Russia will have the new course," he said.

Author: Lyudmila Maratova, CK correspondent

Source: Caucasian Knot