26 February 2004, 16:03
Chechens demand to restore Aukhovsky district in Dagestan
On February 23, the 60th anniversary of the deportation of the Chechens, about 4 thousand people held an authorized meeting in Dagestan. The meeting took place in the village of Charavali, Dagestan's Novolaksky district, reported a source at the Dagestani Interior Ministry. This district is situated in the foothill area on the border with Chechnya south of the Dagestani town of Khasavyurt. Residents of both Dagestan and Chechnya took part in the meeting. Their main demand was that Akkinsky Chechens (Chechens who have originally been living in Dagestan) should be given their lands back and the Aukhovsky district of Dagestan should be restored.
The Aukhovsky district, which was populated mainly by Chechens, existed in Dagestan before the deportation of the Chechen people in 1944. Then it was liquidated, and the Novolaksky district was established instead of it. Several thousands of Lakks became residents of the new district. They were in fact forced to move there from their native lands in mountains. In the early 1990s, the Chechen population of Dagestan set up a claim to restore the Aukhovsky district.
The fact that the meeting was held shows the question about the destiny of the Novolaksky district, which has temporarily not been on the "agenda" after the invasion of this district by Basayev and Khattab's units in 1999, is quite critical again. Altogether about 50 thousand Akkinsky Chechens live in Dagestan today.
Source: REGNUM News Agency
