News

Lev Ponomariov, leader of the Movement for Human Rights, has applied to a court of law questioning the legality of the Moscow government's banning a meeting scheduled for February 23 this year.

A news conference devoted to the court verdict in the so-called Ulman case tried to give it a valuation. The verdict left servicemen accused of killing six civilians in Chechnya unpunished.

Terry Davis touched on his closed meeting with the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia and emphasized one more time it was essential that the conflict be resolved in a peaceful way.

Their action is caused by the indifference of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees towards them.

Many participants underlined that the ruling regime in Azerbaijan would not fight corruption as it itself is completely corrupted and the new leader of the county has no political will to launch the fight against corruption.

The young men simply don't see prospects of peaceful life, it means workplaces for them haven't been created," Salambek Maigov said.

Participants explored the commitment of the two sides to their stated positions ? that of territorial integrity on the part of Georgia and that of recognition of independence on the part of the Abkhazians ? and whether they can articulate their positions in a way that better incorporates the aspirations of the other party.

The Georgian parliament has adopted a resolution today to arrange a nation-wide discussion about the status of Adjaria. In conformity with the document, amendments to the Constitution of Georgia concerning the division of power between the center and Adjaria will be proposed this week.

A special operations detachment of the Russian Defense Ministry was ambushed by Chechen guerrillas in the Vedeno district during an operation to arrest Chechen field commander Shamil Basayev.

The European Commission for Democracy through Law of the Council of Europe, better known as the Venice Commission, is a consultative body on the issues of constitutional law.

"We were evicted from Abkhazia with the assistance of Russia, and we are not allowed in there now. We live in poverty in Georgia, live on $5-6 a month, and don't have jobs," said the leader of the People's Party of Georgian Refugees, Boris Kukubava.

"I think that those interested in violent acts in Ingushetia are forces to which the extension of the armed conflict is advantageous," the deputy head of Ingushetia's Sunzha district administration said.

Servicemen driving on an UAZ truck were ambushed in the Urus-Martan district. Rebels blasted the vehicle and opened fire on the servicemen.

Mus Hajji Baskhaev, a local resident, was set free together with the boys.

In one of the rooms of the migration service, a police officer offered the refugees to sign a document that they had allegedly found two self-made explosive devices on the territory of their camp and delivered them to the police. In case of their refusal, the police officer promised serious problems with registration to the refugees.

The document reads in particular that the parties decline to use force and create a federative state in which Abkhazia will have special political and legal status.

The opposition is seeking for reasons to evade the dialogue and must bear all responsibility for consequences of the frustration of negotiations, the leader of the faction Republican Party of Armenia said.

The Georgian-Abkhazian meeting to continue working out the guarantees of security and non-renewal of war is to take place in Sukhum.

Actions to commemorate the 140th anniversary of the end of the Caucasian War and the day of memory of its victims are to take place in Adygeya, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachaevo-Cherkessia, and Krasnodar Territory on May 21.

Participants discussed the situation in Transcaucasia and Moscow's possible lose of allies; the change of power in Adjaria as a strategic loss; the development of the situation around Abkhazia and South Osetia threatening to destabilize the entire region.