News

Zurab Kachkachishvili, speaker of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of Georgia, has assured that the number of ballot papers in polling stations is equal to the number of voters. It was his comment to the information of NGOs that certain polling stations have registered a deficit of ballot papers, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

The general court of communities Kentron and Nork-Marash in Armenia has ruled to extend by two months the arrest of Aram Karapetyan, leader of the opposition party "New Times". Cardiologists from Austria assert that the detainee's health is "in increased risk zone."

South Azerbaijan prepares to mark the second anniversary of dispersal of Azerbaijanis' rally in May 2006.

Agyl Khalil, a correspondent of the "Azadlyg" newspaper, has lodged a suit against the State Frontier Service, State Office of Public Prosecutor and Investigatory Department for Grave Crimes under the State Office of Public Prosecutor of Azerbaijan.

On May 19, Samvel Gevorkyan and Koryun Tadevosyan announced a termless hunger strike with a demand to release Usik Bagdasaryan, commander of the Masis battalion, and other political prisoners.

Today, the European Union has disseminated a statement related to the extraordinary report presented by the Ombudsman of Armenia and supporting the Ombudsman's initiative to have an independent investigation of the events that happened on March 1 this year in Yerevan.

On May 19, at about 12 p.m., about a dozen of persons in civilian clothes appeared in ward No. 14, Surgery Division, of the Central District Hospital of the city of Apsheronsk, Krasnodar Territory, and forced away patient Rashid Gurzhiev, a member of the Kurmanch community.

The members of the All-Russian NGO "Voice of Beslan" are dissatisfied with appointment of Vladimir Ustinov to the post of plenipotentiary representative of Russian President in the South Federal District (SFD) and sent a letter today to the new official.

Human rights activists are concerned with the situation around the "Vostok" (East) battalion of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, deployed in Chechnya, and state that irrespective of the political context, the grave crimes revealed during the recent weeks shall be investigated.

The central square of Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, is now the venue of a protest rally, in which about one hundred persons take part. The protesters demand to stop prosecuting the "Charitable Women's Hospital".

Rashid Gurzhiev and Anatoly Dursunov, members of the Kurmanch community, were beaten by employees of law enforcement bodies of the Krasnodar Territory.

Andres Herkel and Evgenia Zhivkova, co-rapporteurs of the PACE, continue their meetings in Azerbaijan. Today they had a meeting with Azer Ahmedov, director of the "Azadlyg" newspaper.

Today, at the trial on the events on October 13, 2005, the Supreme Court of Kabardino-Balkaria continued to select future jurymen. The defence party has finished questioning the candidates. Two defendants have stated that they were beaten by sentries.

On May 15, Alan Parastaev, a citizen of South Ossetia, who was sentenced on charges of an attempt on President of South Ossetia Eduard Kokoity and high treason, lodged a cassation complaint to the Supreme Court of the Republic of South Ossetia with a demand to reconsider the verdict.

Ombudsman of Georgia Sozar Subari has addressed Levan Tarkhnishvili, head of the Central Electoral Commissions of Georgia, with a request to draw up a protocol on Lado Kvichidze, Manager of the Tbilisi City Illumination Agency ("Tbilgorodosveschenie"), who ordered to take away pre-election posters of Eka Beseliya, a candidate from the United Opposition.

Temur Yakobashvili, State Minister for Reintegration Issues, made his forecast in answer to the question on how the present status of Russian-Georgian relations can affect the next round of negotiations on accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organization to start early next week.

Beatings, tortures and other illegal actions of Russian militiamen against their fellow citizens are in many aspects provoked by their experience gained in the course of "counterterrorist operations" in Northern Caucasus, Oleg Orlov, Chairman of the Board of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" asserts.

Because of the pressure exerted by the authorities of Georgia, 26 majority candidates from the block of "industrialists" have withdrawn their candidatures.

Today in the afternoon, the police have undertaken a number of steps to prevent a protest action planned by supporters of Aram Karapetyan, leader of the opposition party "New Times", near the building of the State Office of Public Prosecutor of Armenia, and took away their tent.

The Women's Charitable Hospital, located in Makhachkala, is now under audits and inspections held by the Ministry of Public Health of Dagestan. The Hospital managers explain these measures by their unwillingness to abandon the premises now occupied by the Hospital.