Mr General Secretary,
Permit me to remind you that in 2007 I sent you the draft for Resolution No, 1, with a request to submit it for consideration at a session of the PACE. At my request you agreed to meet with me, and on 7 February 2002 during our meeting we discussed the 14 points of this draft. Since then I have been waiting for a response from you as to whether you consider the 14 points proposed in this draft either partly or wholly acceptable for consideration at a session of the PACE, or whether they are not acceptable for consideration by the PACE for whatever juridically founded reasons. I very much hope to receive an answer.
With great regret, I wish to express my opinion -- founded on numerous facts -- that with regard to the Chechen question the Council of Europe has not met its international obligations, as set out in its Statute. In particular, one of the many examples that will confirm this is article 8, which states:
Any member of the Council of Europe which has seriously violated Article 3 may be suspended from its rights of representation and requested by the Committee of Ministers to withdraw under Article 7. If such member does not comply with this request, the Committee may decide that it has ceased to be a member of the Council as from such date as the Committee may determine.
The application to Russia of article 8 of the Statute should have followed from its severe violation of article 3 of the Council of Europe‟s Statute, which states:
Every member of the Council of Europe must accept the principles of the rule of law and of the enjoyment by all persons within its jurisdiction of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and collaborate sincerely and effectively in the realisation of the aim of the Council as specified in Chapter I.
The Russian Federation has not fulfilled a series of obligations imposed upon it by Resolution No. 193 of 28 February 1996, signed by Russia on its entry into the Council of Europe.
Mr General Secretary, I think you do not need to be reminded that impunity for those who commit crimes brings with it new crimes, which was graphically demonstrated by the events in
Georgia of 8 August 2008. The Council of Europe has practically ceased to concern itself with the Chechen question, proceeding from the notion that the destroyed towns and cities of Chechenia are being rebuilt and that a process of stabilization is taking place. I would be overjoyed if a genuine stabilization of the situation in Chechenia were to set in. But unfortunately this is far from being the case, and in order to be sure of this, one needs to be up to date with the actual situation, as opposed to with one-sided disinformation. For it is clear that without justice there can be no stabilization.
Is it really just to claim that the reconstruction of houses -- on the bones of those killed and buried alive -- represents a resolution of the Chechen question? Where are the guarantees that everything that has taken place so far will not be repeated? Can the war really end without a peace agreement? Or does the Council of Europe, following Russia‟s lead, affirm that this was not a war but an „anti-terrorist operation‟? Can it be said that everything the Russian military and political forces did to the Chechen people corresponds to the rules and norms of international law, is inscribed within the term „anti-terrorist operation‟ and should go free of punishment? In that case, you should confirm this with legal proofs. Or is our people not worthy of this? Is it possible that one can spill as much Chechen blood as one wishes, and yet the shield of the „anti-terrorist operation‟ will justify the Council of Europe‟s refusal to give due consideration to the Chechen question?
Mr General Secretary, I write to you on the day of Human Rights and hope that you will not ignore my right to receive answers to the aforementioned questions -- above all to the question of whether the draft Resolution No. 1 will be submitted for consideration by the PACE.
In the coming weeks materials will be presented to the Council of Europe which confirm the violation by the Russian Federation of a large number of rules and norms of international law, which not only were not prevented in time, but were not even officially recognised as violations. This in turn led to unpunished crimes committed by the Russian military and political authorities against the Chechen people.
Respectfully yours,
Said-Emin Ibragimov
President of the International Association "Peace and Human Rights"
10.12. 2008
Strasbourg.
