Authorities try to move refugees out of TS in Chechnya capital

"Go to your villages!" declared Khozhbaudi Estamirov, head of Staropromyslovski district administration of the capital of Chechnya, to the residents of the temporary shelter for refugees (TS) located at 289, Derzhavin Street in Grozny during his visit to the TS yesterday on June 5, reported the Grozny office of the "Memorial" human rights centre (HRC) to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"Having come in the afternoon, accompanied by armed guards, to the TS in Derzhavin Street of Grozny, Estamirov ordered his subordinates to withdraw the potable water tank from the refugees. This would mean a positive catastrophe for them as water pipeline in Grozny is out of operation and water is supplied by humanitarian organizations which have installed a tank and regularly refill it," explain at the "Memorial" HRC.

"The indignant residents of the TS surrounded the water tank and did not allow it to be taken away. Getting angry at his failure, Kh. Estamirov promised to dispatch a group of militiamen," relate the human rights activists.

Several hours before that, on June 5, after nine in the morning, officials of Staropromyslovski district administration and of the migration service of the Chechnya capital came to the TS. According to Natalia Estemirova, employee of the "Memorial" HRC who visited the camp of internally displaced persons, the administration officials announced that the TS must be disbanded as soon as possible, because the building should be used as a kindergarten, i.e. according to its specified purpose. The residents would be allocated places for living in other TSs of the district. The migration service officials stated that this was not their initiative but the district administration was entitled to such actions. The talk got heated. The refugees declared that they did not want to move from one TS to another and, if they were evicted, they would go to Ingushetia and ask president Ziazikov for shelter.

The Staropromyslovski district administration officials asserted that there was a list of places for resettlement. "The residents claim that they will be moved to inferior conditions as compared to the existing ones. The authorities want them to sign applications for resettlement, not having seen the new dwellings. People assume that there is a dirty trick somewhere. Those who resided in Staropromyslovski district of Grozny previously were promised to be allocated flats, from 20 to 50, but no concrete addresses were mentioned. The flats were to be allocated to disabled persons, labour veterans and other individuals entitled to privileges. There was also a promise to allocate land plots, construction materials, etc. However, people, knowing the value of such promises, did not entirely believe them. Even given this, an allocated land plot does not solve the problem because some dwelling must be built on it. There are people who applied for land plots two or three years ago, but no one has received them so far. They also promised to promptly pay compensation for the lost dwelling, but nobody believes it either. Those who have not resided in the district were not promised anything on the ground that the administration of the districts of their origin must deal with them," said Natalia Estemirova.

According to the human rights activist who had been negotiating for the whole day with the Grozny Staropromyslovski district administration yesterday, the functionaries could not substantiate the necessity of a prompt vacation of the TS building: there is no money for its repair in order to prepare its premises for the kindergarten and there is no construction team for starting the repair.
 
"Yesterday, about 5 p.m. Svetlana Gannushkina, member of the Council on Human Rights under the RF President and the "Memorial" HRC Council, talked over the telephone with Khozhbaudi Estamirov, head of Staropromyslovski district administration. He claimed that it was a normal tidying up of the facilities. Estamirov flatly denied any possibility of physical pressure on TS residents and promised that no one was going to block the tank with potable water or call for militia. He also refuted the assumption that he was going to take care of the district local residents alone. According to Khozhbaudi Estamirov, the residents have 10 days for getting acquainted with the rooms prepared for them in other TSs," reported in the "Memorial" human rights centre.

For reference, in the second half of April, Ramzan Kadyrov, head of the Chechen Republic government, subjected the places of compact residence of forced migrants to violent critics. Having called the TSs for refugees "nests of criminality, drug abuse and prostitution," he demanded that the local authorities and law-enforcement agencies should ensure order there. Following that, a special commission was created in Chechnya for monitoring the abidance by the norms and rules of residence in temporary shelters for forced migrants.