HRC "Memorial": power agencies are fully responsible for tortures and kidnappings in Chechnya

On November 22, the Independent Press Centre held a presentation of the report named "Tortures in Chechnya: Stabilization of Nightmare." The report is a joint endeavour of the International Federation for Human Rights (IFHR) and the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial." In September 2005, Oleg Orlov, "Memorial" Board Chairman, and Alexandra Kulaeva, Director of the IFHR's Bureau for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, visited Chechnya and Ingushetia. The report on the universally wide-spread and semi-legitimated torture practice in the Chechen Republic is the result of that visit.

According to "Memorial" representatives, the report has a solid foundation: it presents a broad range of examples to illustrate the facts of kidnappings and tortures in Chechnya.

However, the report notes, Chechnya residents are scared to talk on kidnappings. "They fear local Chechen formations more than official bodies. We found out that in Grozny up to 80% of residents would not talk on what has happened to them," Oleg Orlov stated.

The report runs that this year only, the HRC "Memorial" has registered 143 kidnappings in the Republic, of whom 54 persons are still missing and bodies of eight persons were detected with traces of tortures and violent assassination.