Chechen Roundup Stirs Angry Reaction

Human Rights Activists and Politicians Require Higher Transparency

The human rights advocacy organizations and the Public Defender of Georgia are alarmed with a round-up of so-called “suspicious persons”, majority of which were ethnic Chechens, on night of December 6-7 in Tbilisi. But Russian President Vladimir Putin thanks Georgia for the assistance in fight against terrorism.

The Ministry of State Security and Interior Ministry, who call the massive raids an anti-criminal operation, justify arrests with deteriorating criminal situation in the capital. President Shevardnadze, who gave the operation very positive evaluation, said that the action was aimed at preventing possible terrorist acts in Tbilisi.

“Law enforcers possessed information about preparation of a terrorist act in the capital. Therefore conduction of the anti-criminal operation was necessary and imminent. Chechen refugees should understand this,” said Shevardnadze in his radio interview on December 9.

He said that the law enforcers arrested one terrorist suspect as a result of the round-ups in the capital city. Earlier, on December 6 the special task force of the State Security Ministry destroyed five-men group of armed terrorist suspects in Lagodekhi, Eastern Georgia. As the State Security Ministry reports, three of them, ethnic Karachai were wanted by the Russia Federal Security Service for the terrorist bombings of the residential buildings in Moscow in 1999.

On December 9, Russian President, who couple of months ago threatened Georgia with the pre-emptive strikes against the terrorist bases in Georgia, thanked the Georgian authorities for the “decisive measures in fight against terrorism.”

“Georgian law enforcers carried out special operations as result of which several notorious terrorists were destroyed, which were wanted for bombing of the apartment buildings in Moscow,” Vladimer Putin said referring to the Lagodekhi operation.

He said that the Georgian authorities actions would promote friendly relations between the two countries in the future.

Unprecedented action of the law enforcers, during which tens of Chechens, including women and children, were forcefully brought to police station to take the finger prints, has become a subject of major protest of the majority of the political parties, the Public Defender and human rights advocacy organizations. They say that Chechens are being detained illegally, without any charges brought against them.

“I’ve already requested the Committee of Human Rights and Legal Issues of the Parliament to call a special session in connection with this action, to demand responsibility of the ministers of State Security and Internal Affairs” – Nana Devdariani, the Public Defender of Georgia, stated at a press conference on December 9.

Georgian human rights activists suppose that the massive round up of the Chechens and taking their fingerprints in the capital city might precede massive deportation of the Chechens from Georgia behind the smokescreen of extradition of terrorist suspects.

Human Rights activist Nana Kakabadze claims that the representatives of the Russian Federal Security Service participated in the so-called anti-criminal operation in Tbilisi. Georgian authorities deny these charges.
 
Georgian officials also dismiss the allegations that the prime targets of the anti-crime operation were ethnic Chechens.

“We are not arresting anyone. We are temporarily detaining all suspicious individuals that might be in Georgia illegally. Chechens also can be among them,” Nika Laliashvili, Spokesman for the Georgian State Security Ministry said on December 7.

He admitted that it would be difficult to protect the human rights in such situation, but this problem requires special measures.

The Interior Ministry also denies that the special operations are directed against the ethnic Chechens. Paata Gomelauri, Spokesman for the Interior Ministry said on December 7 that during the night of December 6 to 7 law enforcers raided streets of Tbilisi seizing up to 80 suspicious individuals of different ethnicities.

He said that up to 12 criminal suspects are arrested; large number of weapons and explosives are seized as a result of the first day of the operation.

As Laliashvili said, in the first phase of anti-criminal operation in Tbilisi, “before launching pinpoint strikes against criminal groups, we will have to reveal and probe all those who are in Tbilisi illegally, particularly we have to reveal all facts of violation of visa regime, as well as usage of forged passports”.

While the clampdown on criminals in Tbilisi seems warranted, joint outcry of the human rights activists and politicians may push the law enforcers into showing higher commitment to transparency and their international commitments.

By Giorgi Sepashvili, Civil Georgia