13 February 2021, 11:53
Advocates of "Russian LGBT Network" stop trying to meet Magamadov and his brother
Two advocates of the Telegram chat moderators, who had been taken from Nizhny Novgorod to Chechnya, have left the republic without having achieved a meeting with their clients, but appealed in court their the non-admission to the brothers, the "Russian LGBT Network" has informed.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that law enforcers had convoyed to Chechnya two natives of the republic – a 20-year-old Salekh Magamadov and his underage brother. A lawyer for the "Russian LGBT Network" filed a complaint about the kidnapping of the young men. On February 8, he found out that both were kept at a temporary detention centre in Urus-Martan. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) obliged Russian authorities to provide access to the detainees for lawyers, doctors and relatives. This is a special measure that the ECtHR resorts to if a person is in danger. The guys' father has left Chechnya because of fears for his life.
On February 7, Akhmed Dudaev, the Minister of Information and Press of Chechnya, said that the young men were suspected of supporting a militant from Aslan Byutukaev's grouping and gave confessionary statements. The accusations are ridiculous: law enforcers suspected a gay and a transgender who mocked religion of aiding a militant, supporter of radical Islam, the "Novaya Gazeta" wrote.
David Isteev, the coordinator of the emergency help programme of the "Russian LGBT Network", said that the detainees made no confessions. "During the interrogation, the guys did not utter a word; their father was forced to sign papers with threats," Mr Isteev has stated.
Salekh Magamadov and his brother are suspected under the article "Aiding members of an illegal armed formation", which provides for up to 15 years in prison.
Magomed Alamov, the head of the North-Caucasian branch of the Committee against Torture (CaT), does not think that the punishment options for Isaev and Magomadov in cases of their confession or non-confession of the guilt will differ significantly. "But in any case, the punishment of the guys will be demonstrative," he has stressed.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 12, 2021 at 06:07 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Gor Alexanyan Source: CK correspondent
