News

Today, at the Elborus District Court of Kabardino-Balkaria the accused militiamen M. Mashezov and M. Baichekuev have presented their last plea. The militiamen charged with beating two teenagers and using torture to them, have refused to plead guilty and asked the court to acquit them.

Representatives of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and the Union of Right-Wing Forces (SPS) assert that the electoral campaign and elections in Dagestan were accompanied by mass violations and falsifications in favour of the party in power committed by state servants.

Ilgar Nasibov, a regional correspondent of Radio Liberty, was arrested today in the city of Nakhichevan (Azerbaijan).

The voter turnout of 99.21 percent on December 2, announced by the Chechen Electoral Commission, is hardly real. However, the outcome of this sort could be anticipated.

Leader of the "People's Party" Koba Davitashvili thinks that ex-President of Georgia Mikhail Saakashvili has declared war to his political opponents.

On December 2, 2007, Russia will hold elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation. Along with elections to the State Duma, Chechnya will also hold a referendum on making changes in the Constitution of the Chechen Republic. It is planned to increase the terms in office of the President of Chechnya and Parliamentarians from four to five years and to make the Chechen Parliament one-chambered.

According to preliminary data, the damage from the spillage of mazut (black oil) as a result of the shipwreck of Russian tanker "Volganeft-139" in the Kerch Strait can reach $898 million. Currently, the content of petroleum products in the Kerch Strait is extremely high - the exposure limit has been exceeded by 50 times.

In the city of Belaya Kalitva, Rostov Region, the prosecutor's office have detected the facts of violation of children's rights, namely, non-provision of free-of-charge medicines to children under 3 years old.

On November 29, Suleiman Azuev, advocate of Nukh Nukhov, candidate for the head of the Municipal Formation (MF) "Dakhadaev District", appealed against the statement of the Sovietskiy District Court of Makhachkala on his client's arrest at the Supreme Court of Dagestan.

Warsaw, the capital of Poland, has hosted the First International Conference of the Society "Caucasian House" with participation of prominent specialists from the countries of South Caucasus and representatives of youth organizations from Georgia and Armenia.

Mikhail Trepashkin, ex-FSB colonel, who was convicted for disclosure of state secrets and got his liberty today, is going to appeal against his verdict.

On November 29, an announcement appeared in the Internet website Ingushetia.Ru, which had been oppositional to the authorities of Ingushetia, that it would be terminated in the nearest two-three days.

On November 29, the European Court for Human Rights passed its final decision on the complaint of political emigrant, leader of Talysh separatists Alikram Gumbatov versus Azerbaijan.

The European Court for Human Rights has recognized the guilt of the Russian authorities of murdering three residents of Chechnya, having passed today a decision on the case "Tangieva versus Russia".

The Supreme Court of Russia has rejected the cassation complaint asking to cancel the verdict to special troop's officer Eduard Ulman and members of his scout group, convicted for wilful murder of six peaceful residents of Chechnya.

Yuri Tomchak, Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic, has stated today that tortures were not applied to Zeitun Gaev who had committed suicide in Building 1 of the Interior Department of the city of Nalchik.

In Ingushetia, human rights activists have undertaken to investigate the beating of the filming crew of the "Ren-TV" Channel. The human rights activists think that the Articles, on which the criminal case was initiated, were too lenient, since they do not treat kidnapping and beating.

Faina Kungurova's death in custody on November 18, the only woman recognized by the Council of Europe to be political prisoner in 2001, is a vivid evidence of the arbitrariness and violence reigning over not only the system of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but also the Penitentiary System of Azerbaijan.

Today, the European Court of Human Rights found Russia responsible for killing Zaynap Tangiyeva's elderly father, mother and uncle on the night of 10-11 January 2000 in violation of Article 2 (right to life) of the European Convention on Human Rights.

On December 9, Baku will host the international conference "Human Rights Policies of the European Union and Council of Europe: Prospects of Azerbaijan in the European Integration Process".