Reports & Papers
from
Caspian Studies Program
Summary by Danielle Lussier
Anna Politkovskaya, special correspondent for Novaya Gazeta, covers the war in Chechnya, having spent two years on the ground there. In October 2001, she relocated to Vienna due to death threats she had received. Politkovskaya is presently being provided working space by the Institute of Human Sciences in Vienna.
Background Information and Current Situation
Politkovskaya opened her talk by providing as much information as she could on the current situation in Chechnya. Her last trip to Chechnya was at the end of September. Her assessment of the situation is bleak. The infrastructure has been destroyed, including the legal and banking systems; Doctors Without Borders is the only humanitarian aid organization operating in the region; the population is starving; and the only enterprise that is working is Grosenergo, which receives and produces electricity from Unified Energy Systems. All other business activities are in the black market, the primary activity being the illegal siphoning of oil and gas from the pipelines that run through Chechnya. Thousands of civilians are living in tents, and those who have remained in Grozny live without water, electricity, and experience food shortages.
Politkovskaya noted that an important change from the beginning of the war and the present situation was that people no longer talk about Chechen politics or the future of Chechnya. The only thing the population is concerned about is survival. Politkovskaya stated that when she meets with Chechen civilians and asks, "What do you want?" the response is always a plea for her to do whatever she can to stop the military anarchy. Politkovskaya described this military anarchy as the corrupt system of checkpoints. People must pay 10 rubles at each checkpoint. There is also an additional fine to transport a corpse through the checkpoint. Politkovskaya stated that this additional charge was introduced specifically because of the importance that is attributed to bringing home a body for burial in Chechen culture. Checkpoints and passport control searches have been the source of many disappearances. Politkovskaya claimed that 2,000 families are looking for lost relatives. The uncovering of mass graves often demonstrates that hostages were tortured before their death.
Putin and Military Operations in Chechnya
According to Politkovskaya, it is clear to everyone who knows the current situation that it is not under Putin's control, in spite of the fact that he is commander-in-chief. She maintained that it is in his power to decide how to conduct and end the military campaign. Politkovskaya does not place significant hopes on the negotiations that are currently taking place between Russian and Chechen presidential representatives. She recalled that this is the sixth attempt at negotiations, and believes that generals have convinced Putin to continue the war.
Politkovskaya expressed concern that Putin's recent fame in US politics is extremely dangerous for Chechnya, because no one will hold him in check. She is convinced that Putin will drag out the conflict until the 2004 presidential election, and will negotiate peace talks as a campaign tactic. Politkovskaya stated that "Putin is playing his own game," and using the Chechen conflict as it best suits his own personal political agenda for as long as it is necessary. In her opinion, the war was started to improve Putin's rating and nothing else.
Politkovskaya's Responses to Discussion Points:
Connections to war in Afghanistan:
- Politkovskaya asserted that the US has already taken a pro-Kremlin stance concerning the conflict in Chechnya, even prior to Russia's offering of assistance in the US antiterrorist campaign. In her opinion, the US position has demonstrated that there is a double standard when it comes to human rights: one, higher standard for Americans, and another, lower standard for others.
Politkovskaya stated that she had never seen a member of the Taliban while in Chechnya, but has heard of their existence among Khattab's and Basayev's rebels from other rebel detachments. Most Chechen rebels are categorically opposed to mercenary fighters in this war, internally isolating Khattab and Basayev among Chechen fighters. Politkovskaya suspects that about 10% of rebels have relations with Bin Laden, the Taliban, and Arab Fund, while 90% are opposed to it, wanting Chechnya to integrate with Europe, not the Arab world.
Politkovskaya does not suspect that Chechens are leaving Chechnya to fight in Afghanistan, but believes that Chechens who were living in other areas (Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar) are involved in the Afghan conflict.Government cover-ups:
Politkovskaya explained that Novaya Gazeta had published material on FSB participation in apartment bombings, and expected that the procurator would file a suit against the newspaper. Novaya Gazeta hoped that the suit would lead to a further investigation in which the FSB's participation was revealed, but nothing ever happened. Instead the newspaper experienced a tax investigation, a common reaction from the government when the paper publishes something disapproving of the government. Politkovskaya interprets this response as a way of acknowledging this theory as true.
Additional Points
Politkovskaya stated that whenever she would ask fighters why they were fighting, she'd get one of three answers:
1. For Putin's rating
2. For money
3. For lost comrades— this reason is the greatest motivation on all sides.
According to Politkovskaya, many had never intended on fighting at the beginning of the war, but the war continues to reproduce itself with new losses.
Oligarchs played a significant role in the first war in Chechnya, but the second war was different, coinciding with Putin's own personal war with Yeltsin's oligarchs.