The first “Caucasian Forum” starts its work

Today, in the capital of Ingushetia, Magas, the first “Caucasian Forum” begins its work under the auspices of non-governmental organizations, the portal YuGA.ru reports with reference to the press service of Ingushetia.

The first public congress was opened by the famous human rights activist Ludmila Alexeeva, who thanked the head of Ingushetia Yunus-Bek Yevkurov for providing the platform in the country for the discussion of human rights violations in the regions of the North Caucasus Federal District.

"Thank you for your hospitality and participation in the forum" the human rights activist said, addressing the head of Ingushetia. Then the participants of the Congress devoted one minute of silence to the memory of deceased human rights defenders.

The representatives of non-governmental organizations were addressed by Yunus-Bek Yevkurov. He wished them fruitful work at the forum and called them "the elite of the human rights movement of the Caucasus and Russia." "I believed and do believe that the work of human right activists is essential for government and for the state in general. You know the most pressing problems of the society as nobody else does. By identifying the most problematic points, you help the authorities to stabilize the situation and, ultimately, to increase the level of trust in the authorities in society," he says.At the same time, Yevkurov noted that several important steps aimed at strengthening human rights had been undertaken in Ingushetia. "Institutions have been established and they are operating successfully. In the administration of the head of Ingushetia a direct telephone line works round-the-clock, and internet-reception operates on the official website of the Republic. In addition, my blog on Live Journal is functioning. All the human rights defenders of the republic know the number of my mobile phone and can call me at any time. All this is aimed at openness and transparency in the activity of managing and governing the Republic," Yevkurov states.

Also, the head of the Republic told human rights activists that his daily activities begin with studying the report on complaints, appeals and publications in the media related to human rights violations in the country, if there are any. In addition, he informed the participants of the "Caucasian Forum" that during the special operations on identifying and arresting the leaders and members of illegal armed groups in the country, 53 leaders and members of illegal armed groups have been neutralized, 40 of them killed because they offered armed resistance, while 13 were detained.

"I know that kidnapping arouses a particular concern among human rights activists. This anxiety is justified. Unfortunately, this type of crime is growing. For example, in 2010 only one person was abducted, whereas in 2011 this number grew to 8 people. Criminal cases were initiated and preliminary investigations conducted for all these incidents," the head of Ingushetia says.

Yunus-Bek Yevkurov also stated that a number of cases of abduction of citizens of the republic are related to the security forces.

"In this respect I can tell you that we have let the situation get out of control. In the last year eight people were abducted... Among these eight people five were kidnapped with traces of the intelligence and law enforcement agencies," Yevkurov says.

He notes that when in the early morning people are being taken out of their homes with the APCs, "Ural", BMP and "UAZ" cars, it is "foolish to deny that this is the work of the security forces and Umarov (militant leader Doku Umarov)."

He adds that the government is concerned about this situation, certain work is being done, and an investigation is being conducted.

At the same time, the head of Ingushetia says that imitations of kidnappings also take place, because some “stolen” young people were later found in the ranks of militants.

"In general, this problem exists today, but we're working on it and are not withdrawing our control over it," Yevkurov says.
 Evkurov wished human rights defenders to be more balanced in their statements, to tune in to a constructive dialogue. He also noted that he strongly supports such activities. "I am pleased that today Caucasians themselves speak about the problems of the Caucasus. These are the people who best know the problem spots and can offer concrete solutions to many problems," - the head of the Republic stated.

The participants in the first forum of non-governmental human rights organizations and the public of the North Caucasus Federal District today discuss the return of combatants to civilian life. "In 2010-2011, we convinced to surrender more than 100 participants of illegal armed groups and their supporters," - the head of Ingushetia said, according to Interfax.

As he claims, an important and the most effective way for local authorities to fight against crime and terrorism is the prognosis and prevention of crimes. "With the mutual effort of the police, human rights defenders, and society, we have significantly reduced crime and terrorist activity in the country. Thus, in comparison with 2010 the number of crimes decreased by 4 times. A significant number of crimes have been averted," - the head of Ingushetia stressed.