2004 ORDINARY SESSION

(Fourth part)

REPORT
Thirtieth sitting

Thursday 7 October 2004 at 10 a.m.

Mr HERKEL (Estonia). ? The human rights situation in the Chechen Republic remains catastrophic. It is the most recent catastrophe to occur in a Council of Europe member state. Consequently, it is the most important question with which we are obliged to deal in the Parliamentary Assembly. Let us remember that peaceful political settlement of the conflict in Chechnya was promised by the Russian Federation before its accession to the Council of Europe. That promise was not fulfilled, despite attempts to find peace.

If we read all three reports carefully, we find many good proposals. The tragedy is that many such good proposals have already been made in the different Assembly documents and by other international organisations, but they have never been realised. There is desperation among the civilian population, and there is hopelessness at the political level, too. The Assembly has stressed in several resolutions and documents the fact that without political solutions and negotiation there cannot be any lasting peace and stability in the Chechen Republic.

In April 2003, the Assembly recommended that the fighters immediately stop their activities and that Russian troops be confined to the barracks or withdrawn from Chechnya altogether. The Assembly also recommended that all those suspected of committing abuses be investigated. If they are guilty, they must be punished in accordance with the law.

Questions about the destiny of Mr Alikhadzhiyev, the former speaker of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic Ichkerya, have been raised in various documents. The investigation into his disappearance has not resulted in anything. We as members of parliaments know what it means when that happens and there is no proper investigation into his case over the years.

I turn to the most important point that is clearly expressed in Mr Bindig?s report: the climate of impunity in the Chechen Republic. Yesterday, we had a debate about terrorism. Any kind of terrorism must be condemned ? without exception ? but let us go to the roots of the problem. The climate of impunity is just one reason for terrorism, but that climate was created by the Russian authorities, from the severe bombings of Grozny to the wide spectrum of human rights abuses.

I conclude my speech with a question. Unfortunately, I do not have a clear answer to it, but the European community must find one. What does the principle of national self-determination mean in the context of Chechnya?