Appeal of Aslambek Akhmetkhanov's wife to Chechen leader violates traditions

A wife of Aslambek Akhmetkhanov violated the Chechen traditions when the woman asked Ramzan Kadyrov to forgive her husband. The woman's appeal was caused by hopelessness and well-founded fears for the safety of her husband, noted Caucasus experts and human rights defenders.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Ramzan Kadyrov reprimanded Aslambek Akhmetkhanov, the head of an oil company, for drinking alcoholic beverages in a company of women and shooting in the air. Aslambek Akhmetkhanov apologized to the leader of Chechnya. However, after that, he stopped contacting his relatives and friends.

In the Chechen society, Aslambek Akhmetkhanov's behaviour is regarded as unacceptable, since he "opposed himself to power and society," explained Ruslan Kutaev, the president of the Assembly of Caucasian Nations.

However, according to Ruslan Kutaev, Aslambek Akhmetkhanov moved from the "category of irritants to the category of victims," since members of the Chechen society expressed their indignation about the disappearance of the man and "the apologies voiced by his crying daughters."

Svetlana Gannushkina, the chair of the "Civic Assistance Committee", notes that the disappearance of Aslambek Akhmetkhanov "confirms the cruel nature" of the Chechen power. According to Svetlana Gannushkina, women from the Aslambek Akhmetkhanov's family apologized to Ramzan Kadyrov under pressure.

The woman's apology for her husband is "beyond the Chechen traditions," Ruslan Kutaev agrees. "A wife, children, and parents are protected by a man, and not vice versa," explained the president of the Assembly of Caucasian Nations.

"However, Ramzan Kadyrov is the only institution in Chechnya able to solve the problems of local residents," Ruslan Kutaev added.

"According to the Chechen traditions, people can listen to a woman more attentively, she causes compassion ... Furthermore, men try not to get involved in any arguments with a woman, this is an unequal subject of communication," said sociologist Lidiya Kurbanova.

She agrees that the behaviour of Aslambek Akhmetkhanov is regarded by the Chechen society as "extremely compromising," since drinking alcoholic beverages is strictly prohibited in Chechnya.