Open letter from Olivier Dupuis to Under-Secretary of Italian Foreign Ministry Margherita Boniver

Brussels, 27 January 2004

Honourable Under-secretary,

If the truth be known, I am rather fed up - to say the least - with the attitude of European politicians (and also businessmen and journalists) towards the Chechen tragedy.

Every now and then there is an upspring, albeit partial, of integrity or reason, like last Friday, for example, when I heard the French Foreign Minister, De Villepin, define what is happening in Chechnya as "an open war". The Chechen tragedy is so desperate precisely because it is denied, and for this reason when someone merely acknowledges its existence it is almost moving. Unfortunately, however, this happens increasingly seldom, and in any case it does not seem to lead the European Union or its Member States to follow up these words with actions.

As far as Italy is concerned, I hoped for a moment that the Prime Minister would grasp the opportunity presented by Adriano Sofri's hunger strike to "rectify" the position he had previously assumed (the "myths" about Chechnya). This did not happen, unfortunately, or at least not in the way that would have been necessary.

On the other hand, I remember well the statements you made during the same period on the political and current affairs programme presented by Giuliano Ferrara on La 7, especially your insistence on the fact that the Prime Minister's attitude did not preclude the possibility, or even the need, to deal with the "humanitarian" aspect of the Chechen question.

I also know that you have taken an interest in the co-operation project co-ordinated by the Provincial Council of Bolzano with the Chechen Minister of Health, Dr Umar Khanbiev, whom you had the opportunity to meet during Ferrara's programme. Unfortunately, we must once again take note that due to the proliferation of bureaucratic obstacles and delays, this initiative - already planned last July - has still not got off the ground, with the result that most of these children, who had travelled to Baku in Azerbaijan, with all the attendant risks and expenses, in order to reach Bolzano from there, have been forced to return to Chechnya, their wounds untreated.

On the "refugee" front, the situation, as you know, is disastrous. In Ingushetia the camps are being closed one by one and the refugees are forced to return to Chechnya, far from the eyes and the possible assistance of international NGOs. In Georgia and Azerbaijan Europe is almost completely absent, although for obvious reasons the presence of the European Union in those countries would not be as problematic as elsewhere.

On the question of the welcome and the right of access to the European countries, over the last few years the representatives of the Maskhadov government have suffered from mean-spirited conduct which, to be frank, does not do Europe much credit. The Minister of Culture, Akhmed Zakaiev, was arrested and imprisoned in Denmark, then arrested again in England, on the basis of an application for extradition from Russia that the courts of Copenhagen and London judged to be no more than a pack of lies. The Foreign Minister, Ilyas Akhmadov, has been blocked in the United States for over 18 months simply because Russia has issued an arrest warrant on his head! Tired of the inertia of the American courts, in October Akhmadov applied to Sweden for asylum. Today, however, I have heard that the Swedish authorities will not come to a decision before July. I could continue to list similar examples of Soviet-style action or inaction. But I do not wish to bore you any further. The point is that these Chechen figures are the very people who are proposing and working (when they are allowed to work) for a political and peaceful solution to the Russo-Chechen tragedy. It is not only inadmissible, therefore, but also incomprehensible that they are not guaranteed the possibility to live and travel within the territory of the Union. All the more so in view of the fact that the Union could take a common initiative of this nature on the basis of its own Treaties (Art. 14 section 3 of the EC Treaty).

For these reasons, and for others explained in the enclosed document, on 18 January I began a hunger strike. I would obviously be very glad to be able to meet you to discuss whether, and in what way, you can contribute to restore hope to the Chechens and dignity to Europe, with respect, at least, to more specifically humanitarian questions. As a result of your long political experience, you will undoubtedly know that most humanitarian catastrophe derive or germinate, as the poisoned fruit, from a political disaster, and that for this reason humanitarian "interference" itself, without representing any hostility, is an act of great political significance.

Thank you in advance for your attention. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Olivier Dupuis
(Radical Member of the European Parliament)

Editors note: See also the article "European Parliament member continues hunger strike in defense of Chechnya".