News

December 18, 2008 12:29

• Azerbaijani parliament to consider cancellation of limit on presidential terms

  Today, a joint sitting of parliamentary commissions on legal policy, issues of state structure and human rights has approved the draft Referendum Act on making amendments and additions to the Constitution of Azerbaijan. Then, the document was passed over for consideration at the plenary session of the National Assembly. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports that among offered innovations there is a point on lifting restrictions on election of one person as the country's president for more than two times.

December 18, 2008 12:25

• Supreme Court of Dagestan to reconsider violations of journalists' rights

  The case of Rizvan Rizvanov, director general and founder of the weekly "Nastoyaschee Vremya" (Current Time) will be considered in the near future by the Presidium of the Supreme Court of Dagestan.

December 18, 2008 12:18

• Suspects of blowing up five-storey house in Baku complain of torture

  On December 17, Elchin Bekhbudov, chair of the Azerbaijani Committee against Torture, has addressed the Interior Minister Ramil Usubov on the issue of torture used at the 24th police station of the Nizami District Police Department.

December 18, 2008 12:16

• Criminal prosecution of four oppositional activists stopped

  A number of criminal cases initiated against oppositionists on clashes with the police on March 1 in Yerevan have been closed because of insufficient evidence. Journalists were informed about it by Vaagn Arutyunyan, head of the special investigatory group.

December 17, 2008 12:08

• Ecologists: road construction in "Bolshoi Utrish" Reserve in Krasnodar Territory was legalized by three Departments

  Ecologists now know from documents that three Departments of the Krasnodar Territory had participated in legalizing the road constructions in the "Bolshoi Utrish" Nature Reserve near the city of Anapa. And one of them - the Department of Biological Resources and Environment Preservation - has coordinated all the issues of this construction within one day.

December 17, 2008 12:06

• Numerous violations revealed in old people's home in Volgograd Region

  The Prosecutor's Office of the Kikvidzenskiy District of the Volgograd Region has revealed a number of gross violations in the operation of the state specialized in-patient establishment of social service of citizens of advanced age and invalids named "Macheshanskiy Boarding Home for Old People and Invalids". The top managers of the establishment were brought to administrative responsibility.

December 17, 2008 12:03

• OSCE Observation Mission promulgates its final report on presidential election in Azerbaijan

  The final report of the Observant Mission of the Office for Democratic Institutes and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the OSCE runs that at the presidential election in Azerbaijan on October 15, the conditions crucial for pluralistic democracy were not observed.

December 17, 2008 11:59

• Azerbaijani human rights activists state worsening of human rights situation

  The Monitoring Group of Human Rights Organizations of Azerbaijan (MGHROA) has summed up its 2008. "The elapsing 2008 wasn't varicoloured from the viewpoint of ensuring human rights and won't be remembered for any significant positive events," Novella Dzhafaroglu, chairperson of the Society in Defence of Women's Rights named after Dilyara Alieva, said today in the press conference, as the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

December 17, 2008 11:56

• Head of AACh in Georgia: Armenian party is against commission on studying accessory of Norashen Church

  The Armenian party objects to setting up a special commission for studying the accessory of the Surb Norashen Church, since historically it is Armenian. This was stated by Bishop Vazgen Mirzakhanyan, head of the Eparchy of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AACh) in Georgia, in his interview to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

December 17, 2008 11:53

• Prosecutor's Office recognizes that victims' property in Dubrovka was plundered

  The Prosecutor's Office of Moscow has recognized the fact that the property of the victims of the Dubrovka terror act was plundered. Advocate of the suffered party Igor Trunov said that such statement was made by the spokesman of the Prosecutor's Office of Moscow.

December 17, 2008 11:49

• Human rights activist: nobody addresses the problem of North-Ossetian forced migrants

  Nazir Kotiev, Chairman of the human rights organization named "Union of Deportees from North Ossetia", asserts that nobody is now dealing with the real solution of the problems of forced migrants from the Prigorodny District and Vladikavkaz from North Ossetia.

December 17, 2008 11:45

• Armenia: trial on "Case of Seven" will be open

  The trial that starts on December 19 on the criminal case of participants of mass disorders on March 1-2 in Yerevan, also known as the "Case of Seven", will be open, said Alina Engoyan, press secretary of the Cassation Court of Armenia.

December 17, 2008 11:29

• Sarkis Atspanyan refuses to stop termless hunger strike

  Despite all appeals of the members of the Committee in Defence of Political Prisoners, Sarkis Atspanyan continues his termless hunger strike. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has learnt about it from human rights activist Vardan Arutyunyan, who characterized Atspanyan's health condition as very grave.

December 16, 2008 16:21

• Rostov Region: retired mine workers are on hunger strike

  In the city of Zverevo, Rostov Region, 11 retired miners are on hunger strike. The protesters, some of them have been hospitalized, stand for the privilege they deserve by the law - the right to use free-of-charge coal or heating facility.

December 16, 2008 16:19

• In Krasnodar Territory, builders cut down century-old junipers in the Reserve

  In Utrish, Krasnodar Territory, the builders have started to cut down century-old junipers in the area of the second lagoon - in the very centre of the "Bolshoi Utrish" Natural Reserve. On December 15, the site was visited by the investigatory group from the Department of Internal Affairs of the city of Anapa, accompanied by the "Green" activists.

December 16, 2008 16:15

• Chair of Azerbaijani Committee against Torture visits Insanov and Bashirli

  Today, Elchin Bekhbudov, Chair of the Azerbaijani Committee against Torture, has visited ex-Minister of Public Health Ali Insanov, who is treated at the medical establishment of the Penitentiary Service of the Ministry of Justice located in Beyuk Shor village, and Ruslan Bashirli, leader of the "Eni Fikir" (New Thought) Youth Association, kept in Colony No. 1.

December 16, 2008 16:11

• Papuashvili: Georgia breaks the rights of forced migrants

  The rights of forced migrants in Georgia are violated since the country's leadership lacks clear programme and coordinated actions, as well as due legislation on how to tackle their problems. This was stated by lawyer Simon Papuashvili, coordinator of the project on rendering legal aid to refugees at the Human Rights Centre, in his interview to the Caucasian Knot correspondent.

December 16, 2008 16:09

• Azerbaijan: trial of the case "Abu-Bekr" Mosque believers versus police resumed

  On Tuesday, December 16, the Nariman District Court of Baku, presided by Judge Turgay Guseinova resumed consideration of the claim lodged by the religious community "Believers of Nariman District" versus Nariman District Police Department. The believers want to restart attending the "Abu-Bekr" Mosque, which was subjected to armed attack on August 17 this year, when a grenade exploded inside killing two persons and wounding 13 more.

December 16, 2008 16:05

• In Geneva, South Ossetia urges the West not to supply offensive arms to Georgia

  The delegation of South Ossetia has arrived to Geneva to take part in consultations on Transcaucasia to be held on December 17-18. South Ossetia plans to demand from the western powers not to equip Georgia with offensive arms and observe their obligations not to use of force in the conflict zone.

December 15, 2008 13:36

• Bogatyryov: militaries in Kabardino-Balkaria are not paid their "combat" bonuses and overtime salaries

  For a long time the authorities of Kabardino-Balkaria fail to pay "combat" bonuses and overtime money to servicemen and equated persons, which are due to them under the federal legislation for performing their duties in reinforcement periods and extra work. In many cases the indebtedness term reaches up to 10 years. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told about it by Timur Bogatyryov, Director General of the "Hermes" legal firm.