North-Ossetian residents equate Kemerovo tragedy to Beslan terror act

Today, at the Glory Memorial, residents of Vladikavkaz have commemorated those who perished in the fire of the Kemerovo "Zimnyaya Vishnya" (Winter Cherry) Shopping Centre; and on March 26, a mourning action "Memory Candle" was held at School No. 1 of Beslan. Speaking about the tragedy in Kemerovo, local residents equated it with what happened during the terror act in Beslan.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in Kemerovo, the fire at the "Winter Cherry" shopping and entertainment complex began in the afternoon on March 25, and it was not possible to extinguish it until the other day. The fire killed 64 people, including 13 children. According to eyewitnesses, the fire alarm in the building failed, and people had to get evacuated on their own.

The real death toll in Kemerovo may be higher that the officially announced number, said Susanna Dudieva, the chair of the Committee of the Beslan Mothers, referring to Kemerovo residents, with whom she is in touch.

The fire in Kemerovo has shown that no lessons had been taken from all other tragedies with many victims in Russia, Ms Dudieva has noted. "All these half-measures led to another tragedy: all that can be stated about Beslan. Such tragedies are results of irresponsibility, impunity and corruption. Over time, people forget about tragedies, and owners of such entertainment centres continue bypassing laws and regulations, while officials get bribes and leave," she has emphasized.

She believes that those guilty of the tragedy will most likely escape punishment; while the announced large-scale inspections of shopping centres across the country will yield no fruit and will soon be forgotten. "Same as with Beslan – those guilty have not been identified and punished. I believe that [the tragedy in Kemerovo] is an internal state terror act, even if it was not committed by terrorists; it's a terror act committed by the corrupt system," Susanna Dudieva has concluded.

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