Russian Parliamentarians reject proposed international warcrimes court for Chechnya

Representatives of both the Duma and the Federation Council have expressed their disapproval of a proposal to establish an international body comparable to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia that would be tasked with investigating alleged human rights abuses in Chechnya, Interfax reported on 4 March. The proposal originated with Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee member Rudolf Binding, who is also a member of the PACE-Russian State Duma Working Group on Chechnya. Duma International Affairs Committee Chairman Dmitrii Rogozin (People's Deputy) termed Binding "a frenzied foe of Russia" and claimed his proposal is based on unverified information. Federation Council First Deputy Chairman Valerii Goreglyad commented that some people have expressed doubt about the objectivity of the Hague tribunal for Yugoslavia. He added that given the existence of the International Criminal Court, he sees no need to establish a special forum to address the situation in Chechnya. LF
...AS CHECHEN FOREIGN MINISTRY EXPRESSES APPROVAL

The Foreign Ministry of the Chechen Republic Ichkeria has issued a statement hailing the PACE proposal to create an international war-crimes court for Chechnya, according to Turan on 5 March. "We are certain that this decision is a serious step that will help to put an end to terror and impunity in Chechnya," the Chechen statement said. LF