Well-known Chechen singer Liza Umarova seeks political asylum in Finland

Liza Umarova, the well-known Chechen singer, asked for political asylum in Finland. Liza Umarova explains her decision by the fact that she is afraid to live in the country that does not protect its citizens.

On July 7, in Finland, Liza Umarova sang at the festival of defenders of peace PAX, held in Helsinki.

The singer admitted that when she arrived in Finland, she felt free for the first time in a long period of time. According Liza Umarova, who has three children, "recent years, persecution of Chechen and Ingush people have increased", and she had "run out of strength to fight against the system," the Finnish website "Yle.fi" reports.

Oksana Chelysheva, the head of the Russian-Chechen Friendship Society, has confirmed the information that Liza Umarova asked for political asylum in Finland.

The singer said that after her house in Grozny was destroyed, she and her son moved to Moscow. According to the woman, in the capital she was persecuted by the Nationalists. "However, Demushkin (Dmitry Demushkin, the leader of the nationalist movement "Russians", note of the "Caucasian Knot"), who decided to declare himself the leader of those people, who attacked us, continued to threaten me and my children," the website "Kasparov.ru" quotes Liza Umarova as saying.

The Liza Umarova's appeal to the Finnish authorities for political asylum is already being discussed in the blogosphere.

"Liza's house was burned down, and her brother was killed. It is clear that she couldn't sing. I am happy about the news that Liza Umarova seeks asylum in Finland. It is high time for her to do that," a user under the nickname "opengood" writes in his LiveJournal.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on September 5, 2005, in Moscow, Chechen singer Liza Umarova and her son were attacked near the metro station "Fili". Three students started beating the singer's 16-year-old son, and the woman tried to stop the fight. Students Petrenko, Bagrov and Belov were detained on suspicion of the assault.

On July 15, 2006, the Dorogomilovo Court of Moscow found two defendants in the case Alexei Petrenko and Sergey Bagrov guilty of inciting ethnic hatred and enmity. They were sentenced to 1 year of imprisonment and to 9 months of imprisonment, respectively. The case against the third figurant of the case Arthur Belov was stopped by the court due to the reconciliation of the parties. On August 30, 2006, the Moscow City Court upheld the verdict of guilty in the case of assaulting Liza Umarova and her son.