23:00, 11 December 2004

Human rights conference held in North Osetia

On December 10, the Vladikavkaz Institute of Management jointly with the North Osetian President's Human Rights Commission held a conference devoted to International Human Rights Day. "Human rights do not exist apart from politics. I think that the appointment of regional governors is justified under present conditions since the existence of the Russian state system itself is under question," Chief Justice of the North Osetian Constitutional Court Aleksandr Tsaliyev, said commenting on the change to the de facto appointment of regional governors by the Russian president.

"All problems rest on the lack of legal consciousness and society's low moral state. Almost 90% of claims people have lodged with us lie beyond our jurisdiction. People don't know what the Constitutional Court does," Ms Tsaliyev believes.

"There're very many procedural violations in North Osetia today. Enterprises, non-governmental organizations, and joint-stock companies often break labor regulations," Chairman the Human Rights Commission Yuri Sidakov said.

Author: Valery Dzutsev, CK correspondent