Three Circassian and Abaza organisations in the Russian Republic of Karachay–Cherkessia have appealed to President Vladimir Putin over what they say is a disproportionate allocation of power amongst the republic’s ethnic groups. [Read more…]
Chechen–Ingush land swap sparks protests in Ingushetia
Ramzan Kadyrov and Yunus-bek Yevkurov (ingushetia.ru)
A land swap signed on Wednesday between the Russian republics of Ingushetia and Chechnya has sparked protests in Ingushetia, as details of the agreement have remained secret. The leaders of the two republics hailed the agreement as an end to a long-running land dispute. [Read more…]
Chechen ‘invasion’ sparks outrage in Ingushetia
Chechnya’s deputy minister of internal affairs, Apti Alaudinov, and his associates standing on a road with the Chechen flag raised. The caption to the picture said the men were in an Ingush village and it was inside Chechnya, which caused outrage online. (/Facebook)
Allegations of a Chechen ‘invasion’ of Ingushetia sparked outrage from Ingush social media users last week, after a photo emerged online purporting to show a Chechen official raising a flag in an Ingush village. Work on a remote mountain road in Chechnya near the border with Ingushetia has revived a territorial dispute between the two republics. [Read more…]
Backlash against Georgian wrestlers follows month of ‘Russia controversies’
(on.ge)
Georgia’s national wrestling team made headlines on Friday after a photo was published online of the team wearing T-shirts of a North Ossetian MP to the background of the Russian flag. The backlash follows a series of controversies around the 10th anniversary of the August War, including in restaurant chain Machakhela, nightclub Bassiani, and with Radio Free Europe’s Georgian service. [Read more…]
Kadyrov contradicts officials demanding apology from comedian
Russian comedian Semyon Slepakov (Video screenshot)
Chechen head Ramzan Kadyrov has played down suggestions Russian comedian Semyon Slepakov should apologise for a satirical song featuring him about Russia’s ‘failing’ football team. Chechen officials earlier demanded he make a public apology, a tactic frequently used in Chechnya to intimidate critics. [Read more…]
Russia’s presidential elections: a special report from Daghestan
Polling station 1071 (Aida Mirmaksumova /OC Media)
On Sunday 18 March, Russia held presidential elections. OC Media’s correspondent in Daghestan, Aida Mirmaksumova, was in Makhachkala as a member of the territorial election commission. Vladimir Putin was declared the winner in the elections, with the official results giving 90.73% of votes in Daghestan to him. [Read more…]
Putin visits Abkhazia as commemorations held for August War
Vladimir Putin and Raul Khajimba (apsnypress.info)
Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Abkhazia on 8 August, as hundreds of Georgians gathered near the South Ossetian and Abkhazian borders to commemorate the ninth anniversary of the 2008 August War. The previous day, commemorations were held in the South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali for ‘victims of Georgian aggression’. [Read more…]
Daghestani police refuse to file charges after attack on journalists
(Aida Mirmaksumova/OC Media)
Daghestan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has refused to launch a criminal investigation against a group of men who attacked the journalists on 12 June during an anti-corruption rally. According to police, the actions of these men didn’t constitute a crime. [Read more…]
Ten arrested in Russian anti-corruption protests in North Caucasus
(Aida Mirmaksumova/OC Media)
Anti-corruption rallies were held in Stavropol and Mineralnye Vody, in Stavropol Krai, Kabardino–Balkaria’s capital, Nalchik, and the Daghestani capital of Makhachkala on 12 June. Rallies took place throughout the country to coincide with Russia Day, organised by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. [Read more…]
Head of pro-Kyiv Chechen battalion in Ukraine shot in Kyiv
Adam Osmayev and Amina Okuyeva (Facebook)
On 1 June, there was an assassination attempt in Kyiv on Adam Osmayev, the commander of the pro-Ukrainian Chechen battalion named after Dzhokhar Dudayev. Osmayev was wounded and is currently in hospital in serious condition. His attacker was also injured. Ukrainian authorities allege Russian involvement in the attack. [Read more…]
