Forced reconciliations in Chechnya have created the basis for a delayed blood feud

Rapid reconciliations of families under pressure from the authorities, as in the case of the accident caused by Ramzan Kadyrov's nephew, lead to a delayed blood feud, which can be realized immediately after the situation in Chechnya changes.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, a high-ranking Chechen official, a relative of Ramzan Kadyrov, was the culprit of an accident in which two people died and children were seriously injured. The authorities immediately forced the relatives of the victims to reconcile with him. Information about the accident was not published by official media, and a criminal case was not opened.

The hasty reconciliation of relatives of those killed in a car accident with its culprit, Ramzan Kadyrov's nephew, was commented on by Chechen political scientist Ruslan Kutayev*, chairwoman of the Civic Assistance Committee* Svetlana Gannushkina* and an employee of a human rights organization who wished to remain anonymous.

Residents of Chechnya are extremely unhappy that people close to the head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov escape punishment for offenses and serious accidents, when their entire family is responsible for the actions of ordinary Chechens, experts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" noted.

The procedure for reconciliation of families is often used in Chechnya after accidents with fatalities, but in ordinary cases it is not carried out so quickly, Ruslan Kutayev* pointed out. At the same time, he noted that the quick burial of the dead is not an attempt to hide the truth, but a traditional Muslim rite. "Even if a person dies at lunchtime, they try to bury him before sunset, or at worst, the next day," Kutayev* noted.

"There are a lot of people driving fast cars, sometimes in a state of intoxication. So such cases happen, but reconciliation does not happen so quickly. At a funeral, the family of the culprit offers condolences, then negotiations begin, and only then reconciliation. But here, the people in power forced reconciliation as quickly as possible, putting pressure on people. There are thousands of options for such pressure: you can threaten to take and kill other children, send them to the front, and so on," he said.

The political scientist noted that what is happening is in sharp contrast to how ordinary Chechens are punished for the same offenses. "There was a case in Achkhoy-Martan in 2016 with a similar accident - and there the entire family of the person responsible for the accident, who died, was found guilty and expelled from Chechnya, and here even the direct culprit of the accident is exempted from liability. Naturally, all this causes discontent, and as a result, a deferred blood feud appears. This has happened in the past: under the USSR, blood feuds were suppressed, and when the USSR collapsed, they came for people whose ancestors 50 or even 100 years ago committed some act that could be washed away in blood," he said.

Kutaev noted that the evasion of responsibility by people close to the authorities is generally characteristic of all of Russia. "You can look at any Russian region: people in power try to evade responsibility for their relatives and loved ones if they commit crimes," he concluded.

In itself, reconciliation of blood feuds is more likely to be a positive practice that helps stop violence, including "honor killings," which affect not only women but also men who have done something "wrong," noted Svetlana Gannushkina*.

"But this raises a question about the law. Ramzan Kadyrov says five times a day that Chechnya is part of Russia, but this situation is an attempt to evade punishment for the person responsible for the accident under Russian law. Relatives of the deceased can express their opinion in court, but reconciliation cannot replace the court," she said.

Gannushkina emphasized that such orders in Chechnya are maintained with the support of the federal authorities. "Local security forces do not even think about conducting any investigations against people close to the authorities, since they depend on the Chechen leadership. The Chechens themselves are strongly opposed to this and people are fleeing in protest," she concluded.

Although reconciliation after an accident is a fairly common practice in Chechnya, in the case of Kadyrov's nephew it is obvious that the family of the deceased and injured was subjected to pressure, the human rights organization employee is sure. "Reconciliation so quickly is clearly a consequence of the fact that they were forced to give consent, possibly through intimidation," he noted.

Local security forces have long known about the impunity of Kadyrov's associates, and attempts to hold them accountable under the law are excluded, he noted. "The security forces do not even dare to utter a peep, so this is practically legalized," the human rights activist said.

He emphasized that the Chechens themselves have an extremely negative attitude towards legal inequality. "They are very unhappy, but all they can do for now is pass on information. In the future, I am afraid, this will lead to the practice of delayed blood feud - today they force several people to reconcile, but not the entire clan, but when the situation changes, blood feud will return," he said.

The human rights activist noted that he had not heard that in other regions there was "such chaos" with forced reconciliation. At the same time, he, like Kutayev*, emphasized that the evasion of relatives and friends of officials from responsibility is widespread throughout the country.

According to Ruslan Kutayev*, the children of the deceased couple who were injured in the accident, according to Chechen traditions, should remain with the father's relatives. "But if there is a very small girl left, she can be given to the wife's mother. If there are no relatives on the father's side, the children are given to the mother's relatives," he noted.

The deceased spouses have older, already adult children, and they will be the ones to take care of the younger ones, the human rights organization employee noted. "According to doctors, the children's condition in the hospital is stable," the human rights activist added.

* are included in the register of foreign agents by the Russian Ministry of Justice.

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