Chechnya: militia detains refugee returning from Austria

The MIA of Chechnya has disseminated the information that on January 16, in the high-mountainous Vedeno District, as a result of a special operation, a man of 32 was detained, who on the eve returned from Austria, where until recently he lived as a refugee. The detainee is accused of taking part in separatists' armed formations in 2001. Local human rights activists assert that the actions of power agents are illegal.

"At interrogation he confessed that in 2001 he indeed for some time was a member of a bandit group that operated in the territory of the Nozhai-Yurt and Gudermes Districts of the republic. The man asserts that he never took part in warfare, bore no arms and in September of that year he left the gang and went out of the country. Until recently, he lived in Austria as a refugee," a source in Chechen militia said in his conversation with the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to his version, now a check is underway of possible involvement of the resident of Makhkety village in committing of grave or especially grave crimes. He told nothing about the future of the returnee from Austria.

An activist of the local human rights organization believes that the former refugee's detention was illegal.

"Last year President of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov repeatedly called the Chechen refugees living in Europe and other countries to come back home and promised complete immunity to them. And now it turns out that President's promise is ignored by the militia. Naturally, this incident will force other refugees in Europe to think hundred times prior making a decision to come back home," the human rights activist believes.

In his opinion, militiamen are often making obvious violations in their attempts to show efficiency, receive encouragements and so on.