Azerbaijan
Deportations from the West: the story of families sent back to Azerbaijan
Activists deported back to Azerbaijan are at a constant risk of being detained on drug charges or accused of other criminal acts.
A group of local young people in the Malgobek District, Ingushetia, have formed a vigilante group to fight against drug addiction. Members of the new organisation, with the blessing of local religious authorities, are tracking down and recording details of alleged drug dealers. These ‘defenders of morality’ record their actions and publish them online.
It is commonly believed that drugs reach Ingushetia from the neighbouring North Ossetian town of Mozdok. Dealers purchase illegal substances from their Ossetian accomplices before distributing them in Malgobek.
The fight against drug trafficking in Malgobek has been supported by Ingushetia’s chief expert in narcotics, Dzhambulat Vadelov. According to him, only direct public involvement can stop the spread of drugs. He also noted that the number of drug addicts in the republic has been on the rise, with 1,423 people officially registered as drug abusers.
‘In 2016, 120 people were included in the list. Thirty people came from the Malgobek District alone; six of them are heavy addicts. Eight people were included in the list in January 2017 only in this one district, including a 16-year-old boy’, Vadelov said.
In order to promote the fight against drug trafficking in the region among local residents, several gatherings were organised in Malgobek. People often support this fight and are ready to support it, however, some don’t understand why a group of people who are not members of law enforcement, have the right to stop people’s cars and search them.
‘It’s become fashionable nowadays to replace law enforcement with social movements. Why can’t the police catch the traffickers while they’re receiving good salaries for this? Why don’t people resent the inaction of the authorities?’ asks Musa, a resident of Malgobek.
In the Malgobek District, the local youth group has already conducted dozens of ‘anti-drug operations’. After detaining people they suspect, the activists release the offender, as they have no other legal measures at their disposal. Following outpourings of support for their actions within the local community, the fight against drug trafficking has been prioritised by the Ingush authorities and Ingush president Yunus-Bek Yevkurov has ordered law enforcement agencies to intensify the fight against drug trafficking in the republic.
Related Articles
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijani activist sentenced to three years in prison on drug charges
On Thursday, Azerbaijani activist Ilhamiz Guliyev was sentenced to three years in prison for the acquisition and storage of large quantities of drugs without the intent to sell. He has claimed the charges were used to punish him after he accused Azerbaijani police in an interview of planting drugs on activists. Guliyev was originally arrested on 6 December 2023 on charges of large-scale drug trafficking. According to Meydan TV, the charges were later changed to the storage of narcotics for pers
Armenia
Brazilian dies after being ‘forced to drink’ from bottle by officials at Yerevan Airport
A Brazilian national has died on the way to the hospital after customs officials at Yerevan’s airport reportedly forced him to drink from a bottle of alcohol he had brought into the country. The incident, which occurred on 8 August, was first reported on by tabloid media. ‘Instead of checking the contents of the bottle, the customs officials forced the Brazilian to drink it, after which he suddenly felt sick and died minutes later’, the news read. Armenia’s Chair of the State Revenue Comm
Analysis
Datablog | How do Georgians feel about drug users?
Recent CRRC Georgia data suggests that drug use is still heavily stigmatised in Georgia, with many Georgians preferring to have neighbours with criminal records rather than drug users. Drugs have been slowly but surely finding their way into the everyday lives of Georgians for years now; in 2020 alone, CRRC Data suggested that drug users in Georgia, at a very minimum, spent $1.5 million on drugs through the dark web between February and August. And yet, data from CRRC Georgia’s Caucasus Baro
Most Popular
Subscribe to our newsletter
