Rally Near the Village of Koshkeldy
On the morning of the 21st June 21, 2001, members of the Human Rights Center the HR "Memorial", Tatyana Kasatkina and Rosiyat Yasiyeva, who intended (were travelling from Khasavyurt in (D Dagestan) to Gudermes ( in Chechnya when they), discovered that local residents had blocked the road around the Chechen village of Koshkeldy. (a 30 minute drive from Gudermes) had been blocked by local residents. Around/ne ar the military control point a A crowd, predominately made up of women, had gathered near the military check point. Overhead flew helicopters hedge-hopping Helicopters flew closely over the heads of above the crowd.
Those who took part in the rally reported tThe following information: was received from those who took part (in the meeting).
At approximately 4 a.m. (in the morning) on the 21st June 21, people in dressed in camouflage and masks -- , who refused to say whoidentify themselves or say they were and uunder whose authority they were acting -- instructions they acted, burst into several houses in (the village of) Koshkeldy and dragged the several young men from their beds.
Taken to an undisclosed location were: In an unknown direction were taken:
1. Radik Kochkarbayevich Umarov, born in 1983 and living on Ulitsa Shkolnaya. He suffers from paralysis, an invalid paralysed down on the right side of his body.
2. Arsen Aslanbekovich Abdurashidov, born in 1977 and the a father of two children; he, who lives on Ulitsa Shkolnaya. His mother Ayna Zavadiyevna, born in 1950, was beaten;: dark bruises were clearly visible on her face.
3. Three brothers of the Shabanov family, who all who live on Ulitsa Sheripova: Ruslan, born in 1980, Dzhamaldin, born in 1977, and Viskhadzhi, born in 1973 who is a father of two children.
4. Sahid-Beck Bachayev, born in 1977, who lives on Ulitsa Sheripova.
BeingA aware of the numerous incidents where people have been taken off/rounded up and never seen again, in such a way have disappeared without trace, the village residents went out onto theblocked the Rostov-Baku road in protest and closed it. Several hours after later, that it became known that the they learned that the detained residents had been taken to Gudermes and were at the VOVD (temporary department of internal affairs). Representatives of the. Representatives of the v village government administration immediately left for Gudermes,
where they met with members of the VOVD. They and attempted/while attempting to find out: what was out the reasons for the residents had been detained, their detention, as their fellow villagers had not noticed themsaid they had done nodo anything wrongillegal. They The government representatives were assured that after a identification checks were conducted – , which took taking a maximum of 72 hours -- , all those who were not guilty would be released. The invalid disabled man, Radik Umarov, was released straightimmediately.
away.
When the head administrator told the villagers were informed by the head administrator what he had learned at the had been said to him at the VOVD, the residents initially decided not to clear the road until the detained were freed. However, Bby then,at time however, people from other settlements had joined them, and had who beguan shouting out slogans of an obviouslyan overtly political nature. The Koshkeldians decided to dissociate/distance themselves from them the new protestors and not give the military any occasion/cause for violent action.
They demanded asked that the "professional protestors" to stop shouting. The villagers took the decision themselves villagers decided to disperse and wait until the detention timeperiod, (that they had been told about by members of the Gudermes VOVD), had elapsed.
The Human Rights Centre Center "Memoriall" has sent a letter to (organs of) the prosecurator with the demanding that his office to instigateprosecute criminal proceedings as a gross breach of Russian legislation the arrests in Koshkeldy carried out by against representatives of the armed forces. as a gross breach of the Russian legislation.
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