Rights defenders treat new Kadyrov's threats seriously

Ramzan Kadyrov addressed new threats to rights defenders, stating that they are "worse than terrorists." Residents of Chechnya have noted the increasing frequency of attacks on rights defenders undertaken by republic's authorities. Oleg Orlov and Svetlana Gannushkina assert that Kadyrov's words are an open threat to the lives of rights defenders in different regions of Russia.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 13, Darya Serenko, an activist, narrated about a 20-year-old Muscovite, whom her parents wanted to marry by force and took against her will to Chechnya. On July 15, the girl's audio message appeared on the Internet, in which she stated that she had had left for Chechnya voluntarily.

The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, speaking on air of the "Grozny" TV Channel, cited the case with the girl as an example.

The authorities of Chechnya "have long crushed human rights organizations in the republic," but they would not stop their attacks on rights defenders, a local resident named Shakhran has noted.

The addressees of Kadyrov's threats are not only rights defenders, but also residents of Chechnya – after such statements, people avoid asking for help, said Oleg Orlov, the head of the "Hot Spots" programme at the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial".

Svetlana Gannushkina, the head of the Civil Assistance Committee, has also treated Kadyrov's words as an open threat to rights defenders.