Brussels, 05/11/2003 (Agence Europe) - Ahead of the twelfth Summit between the EU and Russia in Rome on Thursday, Amnesty International has asked President Putin for explanations on the human rights situation in his country, and to commit to resolving matters. In a press release, the organisation called upon the EU's representatives to ask the Russian President three questions during the Summit, and to publish his answers.
According to Amnesty International, and despite Russia's efforts to present the recent elections in Chechnya as a "step towards the stabilisation" of the region, "credible reports" bear witness to a continuing violation of human rights by Russian security forces, not only in Chechnya, but also in the neighbouring republic of Ingushetia. Whilst the EU is getting ready to negotiate the creation of a Common Economic Area with Russia and hopes to ensure political stability on its eastern borders, the suffering of civilians cannot be overlooked, and the Russian President cannot "continue to shrug off criticism on these fundamental issues", says Amnesty. It calls upon the EU to bring pressure to bear to obtain answers to three specific questions: Will Mr Putin 1) allow unfettered international human rights monitoring in Chechnya (OSCE, Council of Europe) and provide dates for the visits to Chechnya of experts from the UN Commission on Human Rights? 2) commit to immediately halt attempts by the Russian authorities to forcibly return Chechen internally displaced persons until they can return voluntarily in safety? 3) ensure immediate action to bring to justice those responsible for the grave abuses committed during the conflict in Chechnya and provide concrete information about all investigations underway on violations of human rights or of international humanitarian law?