Residents of Chechnya report document checks of bearded men

Power agents conducted another inspection of documents in young men wearing beards, Grozny residents report.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that after the militants' attack on Grozny on December 4, 2014, residents of Chechnya have been regularly reporting about detentions of young men with beards but without moustaches, which is considered in the region as the main sign that a person is a supporter of Wahhabism.

On April 11, inGrozny, power agents inspected motor vehicles.

"The day before yesterday, we were returning from the marketplace 'Berkat', when our bus was stopped by policemen. They took out a young guy with beard, talked to him for some time, and then let him go. When we asked him about the policemen's interest, he said that the reason was in his beard; and he was advised to shave it off, in order 'not to arouse suspicion' and avoid nagging," Zarema T., a resident of Grozny told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"In my opinion, our authorities clearly go too far in this issue. Everyone is free to wear a beard and moustache or not. By drawing attention to such things, the authorities distract people's attention from real problems; and create grounds for persecuting certain categories of citizens; at the same time, providing power agents with unlimited powers," Aslan, an activist of a local NGO, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

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