MPs Grishankov and Melnikov agree with Evkurov's proposal to hold amnesty in Ingushetia

Deputies of Russian State Duma Mikhail Grishankov and Ivan Melnikov have positively appreciated the offer moved by President of Ingushetia Yunus-Bek Evkurov to declare amnesty to those militants who were not involved in grave crimes. Thus, Mr Grishankov, first deputy chair of the State Duma's Security Committee, believes that Evkurov's offer to amnesty militants in Ingushetia is an indication of his desire to understand the situation and stabilize it.

We remind you that President Evkurov said in his interview to the "Caucasian Knot" and "Gazeta.Ru" that he had moved an offer to amnesty all the members of IAFs (illegal armed formations). According to his story, he submitted the proposal to Russia's leadership and received the positive answer.

The "Interfax" was informed by Mikhail Grishankov (faction "Edinaya Rossiya"), first deputy chair of the State Duma's Security Committee, that any such action should be coordinated with the National Antiterrorist Committee. He has emphasized that this work, certainly, should be done in order "to separate the wheat from the chaff, however, whose hands are in blood should answer in full according to the Criminal Code."

In his turn, Ivan Melnikov, Vice-Speaker of the State Duma and First Deputy Chair of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), has named the issue of terrorist crimes in national republics and possible amnesty of former militants "a most delicate matter." In the opinion of one of CPRF leaders, Evkurov's idea can be supported with account of the fact that he is ready to incur responsibility for this step.

Vladimir Zhirinovsky, another vice-speaker of the State Duma and leader of the LDPR (Liberal-Democratic Party of Russia), has noted in his comments on Evkurov's offer that it is difficult to prove that "the militants who come down from the mountains" were not involved in grave crimes. "Basically, it's certainly a pure Russian version: you've run in the mountains, made some shooting, killed people, and now go down please, we pardon you," said Mr Zhirinovsky.

"It's against what they do in Europe," the LDPR leader has noted and explained that in other countries "they use other tactics to fight terrorists - they sue them."

Issa Kostoev, member of the Federation Council from Ingushetia, has emphasized on air of Radio Liberty that none of the Federation subjects shall have the right to independently announce amnesties. However, the republic's leadership can lodge their request to federal authorities and justify the necessity of amnesty. "You can recall that such things happened; they gave some results, although not always," said Mr Kostoev.

In the opinion of Alexei Vaschenko, expert in Caucasian problems, the talks about Ingush amnesty look more like a PR action, because "the main problem is that the authorities of Ingushetia cannot reveal all this underground and isolate external and internal sources of financing and influence channels on the situation." The expert does not find the experience of Chechen amnesties successful: "In Chechnya after all these amnesties the warfare intensity wouldn't go down at all."

Meanwhile, Musa Sadaev, head of the Anticorruption Committee of Northern Caucasus, asserts that amnesties in Chechnya made it possible to pull many young guys out of the underground movement.