28.05.2008 - Source: Amnesty International

Victims of human rights violations and their relatives afraid to submit complaints; victims and their lawyers threatened not to pursue complaint; investigations concerning human rights violations often ineffectual ("Annual Report 2008") [ID 23507]

"Victims of human rights violations and their relatives were frequently afraid to submit official complaints.

In some cases the victim or their lawyer was directly threatened not to pursue a complaint.

Human rights groups in the region publicizing the violations and offering assistance to victims came under pressure from the authorities.

Some individuals were reportedly reluctant to lodge applications at the European Court of Human Rights, because of reprisals against applicants before them.

76-year-old Sumaia Abzueva was allegedly beaten up on the way to the market in Argun on 9 January by a group of young men.

She had been seeking an investigation into the killing of her son in 2005.

She said she had been threatened more than once by the men who had detained and taken her son away from the family home, and who were suspected to be members of Chechen security forces.

When investigations concerning human rights violations were opened they were often ineffectual, and suspended for failure to identify any suspect.

The CPT highlighted gross inadequacies in many of the investigations opened into allegations of torture.

There was no single comprehensive list of disappeared persons, no work to collect DNA from relatives of the disappeared, no work to exhume the mass graves, and no fully functioning forensic laboratory carrying out autopsies.

Very few cases reached trial.

In June, a military court in Rostov-on-Don convicted four members of a special Russian military intelligence unit for killing six unarmed civilians from Dai village, Chechnya, in January 2002.

They were sentenced to imprisonment in strict-regime prison colonies for terms of nine to 14 years.

This was the third hearing into the case.

Three of the four were sentenced in their absence, having failed to appear. The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation upheld the convictions."

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

In March 2006 federal serviceman Aleksey Krivoshonok was convicted of November 2005 killings of 3 persons in Staraya Sundzha; two police officers sentenced in December 2007 for murdering 3 civilians in 2003 ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 22598]

"In March 2006 federal serviceman Aleksey Krivoshonok was convicted of the November 2005 killings of three persons detained by federal forces at a checkpoint near the village of Staraya Sundzha in Chechnya. Krivoshonok was sentenced to 18 years in prison and ordered to pay $7,692 (200,000 rubles) to the family of each victim. In May 2006 the Groznyy garrison military court convicted serviceman Pavel Zinchuk of causing grave bodily harm in the same incident and sentenced him to seven years in prison.

On February 13, the North Caucasus circuit military court began new hearings in the case of Sergey Arakcheyev and Yevgeniy Khudyakov, police officers of the interior ministry who were accused of murdering three civilians in 2003. On February 1, the military collegium of the Supreme Court overturned the December 2006 ruling of the North Caucasus circuit military court and released Arakcheyev and Khudyakov from custody. On December 28, the North Caucasus military court sentenced Arakcheyev and Khudyakov to 15 and 17 years, respectively; Khudyekov did not appear for the sentencing and at year's end his whereabouts were unknown. (...)

In most cases security forces acted against civilians with impunity, and even the limited efforts by authorities to impose accountability failed. One exception was the June 14 conviction of Eduard Ulman, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison for killing Chechen civilians. Three other servicemen, Vladimir Voevodin, Aleksandr Kalaganskiy, and Aleksey Perelevskiy disappeared in April but were sentenced in absentia to nine to 12 years in prison."

Document(s): Open document

19.09.2007 - Source: Amnesty International

Russian authorities’ record on investigation, prosecution and convictions of members of law enforcement bodies for serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the North Caucasus continues to fall far short of its obligations under international law ("Human rights concerns [EUR 46/040/2007]") [ID 21383]

"Amnesty International is concerned that serious human rights violations have been committed with impunity in the course of the second Chechen conflict. While there have recently been some developments in the prosecution and conviction of alleged perpetrators, nevertheless Amnesty International considers that the Russian authorities’ record on investigation, prosecution and convictions of members of law enforcement bodies for serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the North Caucasus continues to fall far short of its obligations under international law.
In June 2007, a Russian court sentenced four men, members of a special unit of the Russian Military Intelligence (GRU), to imprisonment for nine to 14 years for murdering six Chechen civilians in January 2002. A military court in Rostov-on-Don is currently hearing the case against two officers of the Russian Ministry of Interior troops, accused of abduction and the murder of three Chechen civilians. Jury trials have acquitted the men on two previous occasions. Investigations are reported to have been opened into alleged torture at detention facilities in Grozny run by the Operational/Search Bureau No. 2 of the Main Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation responsible for the Southern Federal Region (ORB-2), and against individual members of the Chechen security forces. The European Court of Human Rights has delivered judgments in six cases from the Chechen Republic in 2007, finding Russia in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. In all of these cases the Court found Russia had failed to conduct effective, prompt and thorough investigations into the human rights violations alleged. Amnesty International is not aware of any case where the Russian authorities have brought to justice those responsible for the human rights violations detailed in these European Court judgments."

Document(s): Open document

19.09.2007 - Source: Amnesty International

Functioning forensics institute in order to identify bodies in 52 mass graves would play important role in tackling impunity Chechnya ("Human rights concerns [EUR 46/040/2007]") [ID 21384]

"In addition, Amnesty International reiterates that the lack of a functioning forensics institute in Chechnya continues to hamper work to identify bodies in the 52 mass graves recorded in the republic. (See Amnesty International’s previous briefing for the EU-Russia human rights consultations.) Amnesty International believes such a forensics institute would play an important role in tackling impunity in the Chechen Republic. Those in charge of the disinterment and investigation of the mass grave sites must operate in line with international standards, with the clear mandate of investigating human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, torture and extra-judicial executions, that have taken place during the two Chechen conflicts."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

In most cases security forces acted against civilians with impunity; there was at least one case where courts addressed abuse; Supreme Court overturned acquittals in June 2006 of Captain Eduard Ullman and 3 other servicemen charged with killing Chechen civilians ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 19304]

"In most cases security forces acted against civilians with impunity, and even limited efforts of authorities to impose accountability were frequently timid. However, there was at least one case where the courts addressed an abuse. In June the Supreme Court overturned the acquittals of Captain Eduard Ullman and three other servicemen charged with killing Chechen civilians and ordered new trials. Lower courts had already acquitted the defendants twice, most recently in May 2005. A retrial began in December 2005. Following a Constitutional Court ruling in April that cases involving serious crimes in Chechnya could be tried without a jury, the Supreme Court ruled in June that Ullman and his codefendants could be tried in a non jury trial. On November 2, the military district court started hearing the case in a non-jury trial. The trial continued at year's end. At least one other serviceman was convicted on similar charges. (…)"

Document(s): Open document

13.11.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Residents of Borozdinovskoye file unprecedented suit against Russian Defense Ministry; they are asking for compensation for damages suffered during raid by Chechen-manned Vostok Battalion more than year ago ("Court To Consider Unprecedented Chechen Case") [ID 17624]

Document(s): Open document

07.04.2006 - Source: Prima News

Soldier sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for killing of 3 Chechens in Staraya Sunzha ("Killer of three peaceful Chechens sentenced to 18 years deprivation of freedom") [#48699],  [ID 16500]

Document(s): Open document

06.04.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Constitutional court ruled that grave crimes committed by military in Chechnya to be tried by military tribunals ("Military Crimes In Chechnya To Go Before Military Tribunals") [#48450],  [ID 16501]

Document(s): Open document

17.03.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Chechnya: Military trial opened against Russian soldier accused of killing 3 Chechens in November 2005 ("Russian Soldier Goes On Trial For Killing Three Chechens") [#46866],  [ID 16502]

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Since 1999 verdicts have been rendered in 103 cases involving federal servicemen charged with crimes against civilians ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 16503]

"A human rights NGO reported that during the year a Groznyy garrison military court convicted serviceman Sergey Belyayev in a retrial on charges related to the death of 16-year-old Dzhandar Arsanov in April 2000. He was sentenced to five years in prison. According to statistics compiled by the general prosecutor's office, through mid-year, verdicts had been rendered in 103 cases involving federal servicemen charged with crimes against civilians since 1999. Of these, 27 were given prison sentences of from 1 to 18 years, 8 were acquitted, and 20 were amnestied. Sentences in the remainder were suspended or the guilty were fined, according to Memorial. Government statistics also showed that 34 law enforcement officers were charged with crimes against civilians, with 7 sentenced to prison and the rest convicted and given suspended sentences. The general prosecutor's office released statistics to the press in early December 2004 indicating that since 2001, 1,749 criminal cases were initiated in Chechnya to investigate approximately 2,300 cases involving disappeared persons. Of these, only 50 cases reached the courts. Memorial concluded that the majority of cases opened for alleged crimes by federal servicemen against civilians resulted in no charges because of the absence of the bodies or an inability to identify a suspect. According to Minister of Justice Yuriy Chayka, from the start of the conflict through November 2003, 54 servicemen, including 8 officers, had been found guilty of crimes against civilians in Chechnya. A third trial was ordered for Captain Eduard Ullman and three others for the 2002 murder charges of six Chechen civilians after a military appellate court overturned their acquittals for the second time (see section 1.a.). In May a retrial began of interior ministry officers charged with murdering three civilians in Chechnya in 2003. The retrial of Yevgeniy Khudyakov and Sergey Arakcheyev began after the Supreme Court overturned the north Caucasus military district court's June 2004 acquittal of the two officers. A news service reported that the court found the jury for the trial was convened improperly. Khudyakov and Arakcheyev allegedly shot the three civilians in January 2003 after forcing them out of a truck near Groznyy. The suspects then allegedly doused the victims' bodies with gasoline and ignited them in attempt to cover up the crime. A jury acquitted them again in October."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

In most cases security actions affecting civilians undertaken with impunity ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 16504]

"In most cases security actions affecting civilians were undertaken with impunity. Even the limited efforts of the authorities to impose accountability were frequently timid. On March 29, a Grozny court convicted Lt. Sergey Lapin, a member of an OMON riot police unit, of inflicting serious harm to health and other charges related to the torture and disappearance of Chechen citizen Zemlikhan Murdalov in 2001. AI noted, however, that none of the charges against Lapin related to Murdalov's actual disappearance, nor were any others charged in the case. Despite the opening of a criminal case, a human rights organization reported that no charges were filed after a federal warplane bombed Maidat Tsintsayeva's house in April 2004, killing her and her five children. According to a human rights NGO, there were no indications of progress in investigating the launching of several missiles at the village of Tevzen‑Kale in December 2004. One of the missiles hit the house of the Suleymanov family, killing one family member and wounding two others. The Chechen interior ministry told the press that the federal military refused to acknowledge that it had bombed the village and was impeding all investigation efforts."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Four Russian servicemen arrested for killing 3 civilians in Staraya Sunzha ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 16505]

"A climate of lawlessness and corruption flourished in Chechnya. The government investigated and tried some members of the military for crimes against civilians in Chechnya; however, there were few convictions and reports concerning the number of convictions differed. President Putin stated in a May interview that hundreds of criminal cases had been opened into alleged crimes by Russian servicemen and that over 50 persons had been convicted and given various prison terms, but he provided no further details. Authorities reportedly arrested four Russian servicemen for the November 16 killing of 3 Chechen civilians in the village of Staraya Sunzha. According to press reports, the victims were shot and stabbed by drunken soldiers, who were stopping vehicles and demanding money at a checkpoint."

Document(s): Open document

01.2006 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Police officer found guilty for ill-treating civilian; two servicemen charged with murder, but prosecution still insufficient ("World Report 2006") [#42318],  [ID 16506]

"Only a few cases against servicemen and police officers charged with abuses against Chechen civilians have reached the courts. In March 2005, a court found police officer Sergei Lapin guilty of abuse of authority for ill-treating Zelimkhan Murdalov and sentenced him to eleven years in prison. In two other cases, juries acquitted servicemen charged with the murder of nine people. In the majority of cases involving serious abuses, however, military and civilian prosecutors have failed to conduct meaningful investigations. In many cases, investigators have failed even to question eyewitnesses. Unable to secure justice within Russia, hundreds of victims have filed applications with the European Court of Human Rights."

Document(s): Open document

22.12.2005 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya: Rally in the centre of Grozny to protest acquittals of Russian soldiers who faced trial for killing chechen civilians ("Chechen public demands to quash war criminals' 'not-guilty' verdicts") [#41058],  [ID 16507]

"On 11 January 2002, near the village of Dai, Shatoi District, innocent civilians were killed as a result of a special operation carried out by members of a special military intelligence unit. On 29 April 2004, the jury returned the verdict of 'not guilty' in the case against Eduard Ulman, Alexander Kalagansky, Vladimir Voevodin and Aleksei Perelevsky, who were accused of exceeding their official authority. On 15 January 2003 three Chechens, who worked on a military construction cite, were killed near Severny airport. The news of the crime was widely reported, and on the same day commanders of the reconnaissance group, senior lieutenant Yevgheny Khudyakov and junior lieutenant Serghei Arakcheyev, were arrested on suspicion of murder. The results of the investigation suggested that after shooting dead the Chechen builders, who drove a KamAz vehicle, the military doused it in petrol and set it on fire. Then they stopped Gaz-3110 vehicle and shot the driver in the leg after robbing passengers' valuables. At the time of the crime the servicemen were drunk. They have been acquitted on two occasions by North Caucasus District Court on the basis of the jury's verdict."

Document(s): Open document

07.11.2005 - Source: Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe

Prosecution of members of Russian forces still insufficient ("Tschetschenien: Update: Entwicklungen in Tschetschenien, Inguschetien, Dagestan und anderen Teilen der Russischen Föderation") [#38928],  [ID 16508]

"Offizielle Statistiken vom September 2004 belegen, dass seit dem Beginn des Zweiten Tschetschenienkrieges 1999 insgesamt 22 Angehörige der Streitkräfte Gefängnisstrafen abgesessen haben oder noch absitzen für Verbrechen an der Zivilbevölkerung. Vergleicht man diese Zahl mit der Masse von registrierten Menschenrechtsverletzungen, wird augenfällig wie viele TäterInnen offensichtlich straflos davon gekommen sind. Russische und tschetschenische Instanzen der Judikative sind oft nicht willig und häufig nicht fähig, Verbrechen nachzugehen. Die gesetzlichen Grundlagen entsprechen wie in der gesamten Russischen Föderation grundsätzlich denjenigen eines modernen Rechtsstaats, doch der Ausgang des Yukos-Prozesses hat einer breiten Öffentlichkeit bewiesen, wie auch diese erfolgreich ausgehebelt werden können."

Document(s): Open document

07.11.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

Chechnya: 4 members of Russian military intelligence unit (GRU) twice found not responsible in law for killing 6 civilians in 2002; concerns that impunity for serious human rights violations and war crimes committed in context of armed conflict in Chechen Republic prevails ("Appeal Case Update 2: The killing of six civilians near Dai, Chechen Republic") [#38832],  [ID 16509]

Document(s): Open document

10.2005 - Source: UK Home Office

Since 1999 22 servicemen are serving active prison terms for crimes commited against civilians, majority of prosecution cases against federal servicemen resulted in no charges ("Operation Guidance Note: Russian Federation") [#39393],  [ID 16510]

"The Government investigated and tried some members of the military for crimes against civilians in Chechnya. Official statistics released in September 2004 reveal that since the beginning of the Chechen war in 1999, a total of twenty-two servicemen are serving active prison terms for crimes committed against civilians. According to Justice Minister Yuriy Chayka, from the start of the conflict through to November 2003, 54 servicemen, including 8 officers, had been found guilty of crimes against civilians in Chechnya. [1a] On 11 November 2004, the Supreme Court overturned the North Caucasus Military District Court's 29 June 2004 acquittal of two officers of the Interior Ministry's troops, who had been accused of murdering three civilians in Chechnya. A news service reported that the Court found that the jury for the trial was convened improperly. However, Memorial concluded that the majority of cases opened for alleged crimes by federal servicemen against civilians resulted in no charges. Cases were closed or investigations suspended because of the absence of the bodies or because of an inability to identify a suspect."

Document(s): Open document

30.08.2005 - Source: BBC News

4 Russian soldiers found not guilty of killing 6 Chechens must face a retrial, after Supreme Court judges ruled that there had been "considerable violations" of criminal rules during the case ("Russia troops in new murder trial") [#36030],  [ID 16511]

Document(s): Open document

20.05.2005 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Chechnya: Six soldiers from elite military unit, accused of murdering six Chechen civilians at a checkpoint in 2002, found not guilty by Russian military court ("Russia: Court Clears Soldiers Of Murder In Chechnya") [#32132],  [ID 16512]

Document(s): Open document

19.05.2005 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Description of 'Ulman case'; Russian paratroopers under command of Eduard Ulman who had killed 6 civilians were pronounced 'not gulity' ("Impunity: A Leading Force behind Continued Massive Violations in Chechnya") [#32124],  [ID 16513]

"On 11 January 2002, Russian paratroopers, under the command of Eduard Ulman, during a special operation in the Shatoi district of Chechnya, opened fire on a civilian vehicle, killing one of the six occupants. When already knowing that the persons in the car are unarmed civilians, the soldiers extra-judicially executed the other five occupants of the car. A jury trial pronounced Captain Ulman and his co-accused ‘not guilty’."

Document(s): Open document

31.03.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

Chechnya: member of a special federal riot police unit (OMON) sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment for involvement in the torture and disappearance of a Chechen civilian in 2001 ("Russian police officer found guilty of crimes against the civilian population in the Chechen Republic") [#30779],  [ID 16514]

Document(s): Open document

29.03.2005 - Source: BBC News

Chechnya: officer with an elite Russian special forces unit sentenced to 11 years in prison for illegally arresting and torturing a Chechen civilian in 2001 ("First Chechen verdict for Russian") [#30747],  [ID 16515]

Document(s): Open document

18.01.2005 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Retrial of 4 Russian military officers accused of killing 6 Chechen civilians began in Rostov-on-Don; Supreme Court overturned acquittal verdict ("Russian Officers Face New Trial Over Chechen Deaths") [#28356],  [ID 16516]

Document(s): Open document

17.11.2003 - Source: ReliefWeb

4 Russian servicemen including 3 officers face murder charges for last year's deaths of 6 Chechen civilians ("Russian troops on trial for murder of Chechen civilians (AFP)") [#17659],  [ID 16517]

"Four Russian servicemen including three officers faced murder charges Monday for last year's deaths of six Chechen civilians, in one of the rare military trials held during the four-year war in the Caucasus republic. The men -- Major Alexei Perelevsky, Captain Eduard Ulman, Sergeant Alexander Kalagansky and Vladimir Voyevodin -- faced charges of murder and abuse of authority before a jury at a military court in Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia. [...] Prosecutors say three of the men -- Ulman, Kalagansky and Voyevodin -- opened fire on a vehicle whose driver failed to stop on their instructions in the Shatoi region in southern Chechnya in January 2002. The soldiers then approached the vehicle, realized that the passengers, one of whom was dead and three injured, were civilians and offered them first aid. But, afraid of taking responsibility for shooting civilians, they then executed the surviving passengers, including a disabled woman, and burned the vehicle to cover up the incident. [...] Reports of abuses by Russian soldiers -- including kidnappings and summary executions -- have been rife since Moscow sent in troops four years ago in what Kremlin said was a lightning-strike "anti-terror operation." But few soldiers have been put on trial."

Document(s): Open document

11.09.2003 - Source: Prima News

The Supreme Court’s military collegium decided to postpone till October 2 the hearing of an appeal filed by Alexei Dulimov, a lawyer for Yury Budanov, colonel of the Russian army convicted on July 25 for the murder of a young Chechen woman ("Supreme Court postpones hearing of Yury Budanov’s case") [#16015],  [ID 16518]

Document(s): Open document

25.07.2003 - Source: BBC News

A Russian officer convicted of murdering a Chechen woman and sentenced to 10 years in jail ("Colonel jailed for Chechen murder") [#14676],  [ID 16519]

Document(s): Open document

10.06.2003 - Source: Memorial Human Rights Center

Investigation of crimes against civilians committed by members of federal forces in Chechnya during military operations 1999–2003 ("Deceptive Justice: Situation on the investigation on crimes against civilians committed by members of the Federal Forces in the Chechen Republic during military operations 1999–2003") [#19383],  [ID 16521]

Contents: Sentences to the servicemen who committed crimes against the inhabitants of the Chechen Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 3. Sentences to the policemen who committed crimes against the inhabitants of the Chechen Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 4. Investigation on criminal cases by the office of public prosecutor . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 4.1. Investigation on criminal cases by the office of military prosecutor . . . . . . . . .20 4.2. Investigation on criminal cases by the office of public prosecutor of the Chechen Republic . . . . . .

Document(s): Open document
Open document

04.06.2003 - Source: Guardian

Up to 200 Russian soldiers will be released as President Putin backs amnesty for crimes committed in Chechnya ("Chechens weigh up amnesty") [#13240],  [ID 16522]

Document(s): Open document

04.03.2003 - Source: Council of Europe - Secretary General

Council of Europe: Only half of criminal investigations opened against servicemen have been described as successful ("Twenty-sixth interim report by the Secretary General on the presence of the Council of Europe’s experts in the Office of the Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for ensuring Human Rights and Civil Rights and Freedoms in the Chechen Republic [SG/Inf(2003) 7]") [#11304],  [ID 16523]

"13. The Joint Working Group (JWG) between the prosecuting bodies and the Office of the Special Representative was held on 23 January 2003. The Military Prosecutor of the Chechen Republic provided the experts with statistical data concerning crimes allegedly committed by servicemen (reproduced in Appendix II). Only half of criminal investigations opened against servicemen have been described as successful. In 2002, there has been a reduction in number of criminal investigations opened against servicemen. The Military Prosecutor indicated that there are objective and subjective reasons preventing the prosecuting bodies from successfully investigating complaints and bringing the perpetrators to justice: i) the climate of insecurity in Chechnya; ii) obstruction and pressures from military forces with a view to hiding crimes allegedly committed by federal forces; iii) the lack of professionalism of some staff members of the prosecutor’s office. In this respect, note should be taken that deeply rooted Chechen traditions are often cited as a major obstacle during the investigation, especially as far as forensic examinations and witnesses’ testimonies are concerned."

Document(s): Open document
Addendum

29.01.2003 - Source: Human Rights Watch

HRW: Investigators have failed to take basic steps to secure evidence ("Into Harm’s Way: Forced Return of Displaced People to Chechnya") [#10533],  [ID 16525]

"Russia has resisted establishing a meaningful accountability process for abuses by its troops in Chechnya. Although the Chechnya procuracy has opened hundreds of investigations into allegations of abuse, investigators have failed to take basic steps to secure evidence. As a result, most investigations are soon suspended, perpetrators are almost never identified, and few cases have made it to the courts. The recent verdict on Col. Yuri Budanov, who was released of criminal responsibility for the killing of a Chechen woman, demonstrated that even cases that do reach the courts face enormous obstacles to justice. Human Rights Watch research has consistently found that investigations into the vast majority of serious abuses by Russian soldiers fall far short of international standards. In many cases, we found that, while opening criminal cases, investigators failed to even question plaintiffs or eyewitnesses. Officials routinely suspended these investigations a few months later stating that all possible investigative steps had been taken but it had proven impossible to identify the perpetrators. This trend was most pointedly illustrated by the Russian government’s disclosure of its investigative steps into the forced disappearance of Said-Khussein Imakaev to the European Court of Human Rights. Russian troops detained Imakaev in December 2000. After his mother filed a complaint with the local procuracy, investigators questioned two individuals, one of whom was the mother, and wrote three letters to police and security officials requesting information about the case. When the latter replied that they had no information, officials suspended the investigation. The investigation was reopened (and more witnesses questioned) only eighteen months later, after the Russian government had learned Imakaev’s parents had filed an application regarding his “disappearance” with the European Court of Human Rights. In 2001, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) was instrumental in exposing the ineffectiveness of investigations into abuses by Russian soldiers, when it requested the Russian government to submit a detailed list of investigations into crimes committed during the Chechnya conflict. This list, submitted in April 2001, confirmed that the vast majority of serious abuses were not under active investigation but had in fact been suspended.[93] In January 2002, the PACE requested the Russian government to provide another detailed list of criminal cases by April 2002, but the latter made available only a summary of criminal cases under investigation that had little analytical value. A November 2002 letter from the Chechnya procuracy to the OSCE Assistance Group listing the status of dozens of investigations into enforced disappearances and other abuses shows that officials routinely suspend investigations into serious abuses after only two months (the minimum time period for a criminal investigation required by law).[94] Official Russian figures confirm just how small the odds are that Russian soldiers who commit abuses against Chechen civilians will face punishment for their crimes. According to government figures released in January 2003, only forty-six military servicemen had been convicted for abuses in Chechnya since the start of the armed conflict. Roughly half were convicted on charges of murder or rape; the length of their sentences was not specified.[95] These figures contrast sharply with the thousands of serious human rights violations documented by human rights groups, including hundreds of extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances. According to a government website, www.infocentre.ru, in 2002 twenty-six servicemen were brought under investigation for crimes against civilians.[96] This brought to 162 the total number of criminal cases currently open against servicemen. Of these, ninety-seven investigations have been completed, and fifty-seven sent to a court. Fourteen cases pertain to murder, eighteen to theft, eight to traffic violations, three to improper handling of a weapon, and two to rape."

Document(s): Open document