Timur Utsayev, Grozny. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza
With the end of an active phase of the counterterrorist operation they started to develop a draft of the republican constitution in Chechnya. It was adopted on March 23rd, 2003, at the all-national referendum. It is thought that at this point a turn from separatism to the constitutional environment of Russia was made in the problem of Chechnya’s political status.
The necessity of the referendum was considered by participants of political processes ambiguously. The stance of the international society, human right organizations, and liberal-democratic circles of Russia was negative. The referendum of 2003 was based only on assurance of Ahmat Kadyrov that people would have made their political choice.
The former member of the Chechen Election Commission, Boki Amayev, recalls how difficult was his work at the time, as there was no precedent of such a referendum in Russia. Chechen state employees didn’t know where they could get experience. “We addressed the Central Election Commission of Russia to help us, as we had to develop tens of documents. We were promised to be supported, but they didn’t have necessary experience. At the same time, militants threatened the authorities, first of all members of the Commission. I know several cases when people went to vote, even though they were threatened personally. Unfortunately, there were crimes, and several our colleagues were killed.”
Ahead of the referendum, consultations with leaders of major socio-political forces of Chechnya were carried out for searching ways out of the crisis. As a result a draft of the agreement on social consent – key principles of the political settlement in the Chechen Republic was developed. The agreement was supported by more than 400 representatives of social and political organizations, labour teams, activists of science and culture, creative community. Several tens of members of armed opposition groups signed the agreement as well.
“During the referendum groups of international observers came to Chechnya from three directions – from the Gudermes region, from the Naur region, and from Ingushetia. I welcomed guests on the border with Ingushetia, after that we headed to Sernovodsk. Foreigners were surprised that long queues to ballot stations were visible from a distance. And the situation was everywhere. The activity of the initiative group for preparation for the referendum was well-organized. They prepared 200 thousand information items in a short period – drafts of the law on the constitution, laws on elections of the president and the parliament of Chechnya. A week before the referendum voters received invitations. They received all these materials for explanation,” the secretary of the Election Commission of the republic Ali Vakhitov told Vestnik Kavkaza.
“Ahmat Kadyrov wasn’t disappointed; it was exactly how he predicted – people came to the referendum and expressed their desire to live in Russia. I should say that if the Chechens considered a path right, they would move that way despite all difficulties. Kadyrov used to ask: what is good in wars for people? It was a rhetorical question. Due to the referendum, our republic avoided a lot of troubles,” the president of the Chechen Academy of Sciences Shakhrudin Gapurov told Vestnik Kavkaza.
