18 January 2007, 22:50
European Court has accounted Russian authorities guilty of torturing Chechnya residents
The authorities of Russia have been found guilty of torturing the residents of Chechnya. The European court for Human Rights has passed its judgement today on the case "Chitaevs versus Russia" in favour of the applicants. This decision is the first in the range of cases on tortures from Chechnya applied to the Strasbourg Court, Arsen Sakalov, director of the Ingush public organization "Legal Initiative," told the correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot" about it. The organization helped Chitaev family to submit their complaint to Strasbourg.
Russia has been found guilty of breaching Articles 3 (torture), 5 (illegal arrest and holding in custody) and 13 (absence of legal defence means) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The applicants to the European court, former Chechnya residents - brothers Arbi and Adam Chitaev - will get 35,000 euros each from the losing party as compensation. Also, Russia should cover 7,629 euros of legal expenses.
Rashid Chitaev, brother of the applicants to the European Court for Human Rights, natives of Chechnya Arbi and Adam Chitaev, was sure, that today the court will make a decision in favour of their family. He has told it to the correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot" by telephone from Germany.
Author: Vyacheslav Feraposhkin, CK correspondent
