CAUCASUS TIMES – IN-DEPTH – 2008
4. BACKGROUND - GENERAL INFORMATION
The situation in the North Caucasus today is such that Kabardino-Balkaria, Dagestan and Ingushetia have turned into war zones. Terrorist acts and murders of law enforcement agents, as well as civilians, have reached a mass scale and a pattern of regularity.
As a result of diversionary attacks, tens of military personnel, policemen and civilians have been wounded or killed. At the same time, law enforcement agencies continue prophylactic operations through illegal arrests, extrajudicial executions, abductions, and illegal interrogation methods, including torture.
Law enforcement agencies are silent in the face of this, thereby exacerbating tensions. No official statements or explanations are offered. The topic is forbidden for the local press. The only sources of information are rumors and government television channels – ORT and RTR – which cover the events in a manner most suited to the Russian government’s needs.
The Kremlin’s propaganda breeds xenophobia, anti-Caucasian attitudes in Russian cities, large-scale inter-ethnic fights and negligence by the police as far as national minorities are concerned. According to recent sociological studies, 50% of Russia’s population supports the slogan “Russia for Russians.” That number grows every year.
The absence of objective analytical materials and news reports contribute to many Russians’ negative image of the Caucasus and its inhabitants. The silent consent of Russian society enables the executions that take place on the street without trial or investigation. Thousands of young Dagestanis, Chechens, and Ingushes are illegally detained for years.
Additionally, the lack of objective analytical materials and news reports contributes to the fact that many international institutions are unaware of what goes on in Russia and the North Caucasus, and fall short in their criticism.
As far as freedom of the press in Russia is concerned, the situation has deteriorated significantly in the past year. Since laws regarding “Extremism,” “Terrorism,” “NGOs,” and “Mass Media,” many Russian media agencies have ceased to resist pressure from the government.
Vladimir Putin, who initiated the laws, has armed not only regional governments, but all government officials against the free press.
In today’s Russia, the government controls nearly all media. With the help of various fiscal organizations, federal and regional laws, the media is subjected to strict censorship and is stripped of its ability to speak the truth, especially regarding federal policy in the Caucasus and the corruption of the local and regional elite. The situation is consistently on the decline. The death of Anna Politkovskaia is a glaring example of the terror facing the free press in Russia.
In a situation where the majority of media organizations lack the ability to speak openly, “Caucasus Times - in-Depth” has the unique opportunity to receive information directly from the regions, thanks to its own network of correspondents, and to supplement this information with analytical materials from public figures and human rights activists, and to publish without fear of Russian authority thanks to its legal roots in the Czech republic.