|
|
|
|
TITLE: Second Mass Grave Found in Chechnya |
AUTHOR: Chris Stephen |
PUB: |
DATE: March 1, 2001 |
|
The discovery of a second mass grave in Chechnya yesterday overshadowed the opening of the first ever trial of a Russian soldier for atrocities committed in the province. Ten bodies, believed to be Chechen males, were discovered in a ditch on the outskirts of the Chechen capital, Grozny, adding to the 17 bodies found at another mass grave discovered at the weekend. The Council of Europe's human rights commissioner, Alvaro Gil-Robles, has asked Russia for permission to tour both sites today on the second day of his tour of the region. In another development, Cossacks in Rostov-on-Don demonstrated at the start of the murder trial of Yury Budanov, an army colonel accused of abducting and murdering an 18-year-old Chechen girl. Federal authorities say it is too early to speculate about who is responsible for the new grave, found, like the first one, in a hamlet of former holiday homes on the outskirts of Grozny. Troops have surrounded the site, where the bodies of Chechen men were found dumped in a ditch. Investigators continued sifting through the site of the first mass grave, found in the village of Zdarovia, outside the perimeter fence of Russia's Chechnya military headquarters at Khankala. This site, like the second, remains sealed off, with investigators reporting finding a 17th body in the cellar. The finds come at an awkward time for Russia, right in the middle of the visit by Mr Gil-Robles which was supposed to show how federal forces had cleaned up their human rights record over the past year. Instead, Mr Gil-Robles is having trouble fitting in visits to all the sites. As well as touring both mass graves, which Russia says the de-mining operations may prevent, he also wants to see the site of pits in which Russian troops are alleged to have herded Chechens who were then ransomed. Speaking before starting a helicopter tour of the region, Mr Gil-Robles said: "A civil society must be created in Chechnya. It won't be created if the guilty people are not put on trial." One guilty man, at least, has begun that process. Budanov pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter of Elza Kugayeva. The colonel is accused of abducting the teenager, raping her and beating her to death, although the rape charge was yesterday dropped through lack of evidence. His trial is set to be a showcase - the first time any of the thousands of alleged atrocities committed against Chechens has come before a judge. Outside the court in Rostov-on-Don, Budanov's home town, a small crowd of local Cossacks - fierce Russian nationalists - demonstrated in his support. "The whole Russian army is inside that court room," shouted one bearded Cossack wearing a giant black fur hat and army fatigues. Inside the court, Ms Kugayeva's father, Visar, showed officials photographs of his daughter, one a portrait showing her in a jumper, smiling, and the second, taken shortly after her death, showing her face badly bruised and disfigured. "This is my daughter," he said. "How did she get from this to this?" Ms Kugayeva disappeared from her home village, Tangi, in March last year and her body was found in the same area a few days later. Budanov admits killing her, but said he did it out of anger, believing her to be a rebel sniper. His lawyer asked the judges to consider a verdict of "crime of passion", which usually carries a lower penalty than manslaughter or murder. For Moscow, the question is how many soldiers will follow Budanov. Criminal prosecutions have opened on both mass grave sites, and federal authorities will be under pressure to also investigate claims, supported by human rights groups, of whole army units organising the ransoming of Chechens kept in pits. But resistance to the whole idea is growing. Last weekend the foreign minister, Igor Ivanov, called for the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague to be closed, arguing that with peace in the Balkans such a court was no longer needed. Prosecutors in The Hague are meanwhile trying to get their mandate extended -they want to have a permanent international court. Given the present problems in Chechnya, Russia is unlikely to back such a plan. END |