The NC SOS Crisis Group, which assists people from the North Caucasus facing persecution, has said it will seek the removal of former Chechen political prisoner Ruslan Kutaev from participation in the platform of Russian democratic forces at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). The reason cited was Kutaev’s remarks during an appearance on the YouTube channel The Breakfast Show on 25 April.
During the broadcast, Kutaev, commenting on women and queer people who had left Chechnya, said that he did not intend to deal with these issues. According to him, he represents the ‘conservative part of Chechen society’, and such behaviour is perceived painfully in Chechen society. He also said that, in defending minority rights, one should not, in his view, ‘infringe on the rights of the majority’.
Later in the interview, Kutaev spoke about the concept of honour and said that Chechen society was trying to preserve itself by defending itself both from outside pressure and from ‘internal outcasts’ and ‘perverts’.
‘If people, due to certain reasons or physiology, behave and present themselves in some way, do your own business quietly, do not put us on display, understanding that it offends us. I do not know who is engaged in protecting these people. No one has approached me. And I cannot say anything here,’ Kutaev said.
Responding to a question about so-called ‘honour killings’, Kutaev said that decisions about a person’s fate — ‘to kill, return home, or marry off’ — are taken by the family, and no one has the right to condemn them for this.
In response, NC SOS said that such remarks effectively legitimise violence and impunity. In the organisation’s view, they are incompatible with the principles of the platform created at PACE to represent Russian democratic forces in exile.
Rights defenders recalled that for many years, there have been reports of systematic persecution of queer people in Chechnya. The statement also mentioned women attempting to flee domestic violence. NC SOS noted that relatives often search for them with the assistance of security forces or local authorities. The organisation added that some such cases ended in killings, citing the deaths of Aishat Baimuradova and Aliya Ozdamirova as examples.
Elizaveta Chukharova
NC SOS said it would send an official letter to the Bureau of PACE and to Assembly President Petra Bayr requesting an assessment of Kutaev’s remarks and consideration of his immediate removal from the platform.
‘A platform created for the protection of democracy, human rights, and freedom cannot be represented by a person justifying such practices. The right to life is inalienable. It is unacceptable to justify its violation by “traditions” or a “family decision”. We are convinced that the peoples of the North Caucasus — and in particular women and LGBTQ+ people of Chechnya fleeing violence — deserve real representation that recognises their right to safety and life,’ the organisation said.
The platform of Russian democratic forces at PACE was approved by the Bureau of the Assembly on 26 January 2026. It includes 15 people, 10 of whom represent the Russian opposition living abroad, while five were included under a special quota as representatives of the indigenous peoples of Russia. Among them was Kutaev as president of the Assembly of the Peoples of the Caucasus.
Kutaev is a public figure from Chechnya. In 2014, he was detained after organising a conference dedicated to the 1944 deportation of Chechens and Ingush. He was then charged with drug possession, after which he reported being tortured while in detention. Kutaev and his supporters described the case as politically motivated. Russian rights organisations recognised him as a political prisoner. After serving a three year sentence, he was released.
As of publication, Kutaev had not publicly responded to the calls for his removal from the platform. There had also been no public reaction from the leadership of PACE.
