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English Language Page CANDIDATE AKHMAT KADYROV Ruslan Umarov, kavkaz.memo.ru Akhmat Abdulkhamidovich, why did you decide to nominate yourself as candidate for the Presidency of the Chechen Republic? It was not an easy task for me. I am not too excited to be placed in the thick of these tragic events. It happened so that it was me who generated the line of opposition to the thugs, terrorists and religious extremists. I initiated this fight long ago and if I refuse to participate in the elections today, I will fail all those who counted on me, followed me and believed in the possibility of restoring the order in the republic. Our people unanimously voted for the unity with Russia, for the territorial integrity of Russia and for peaceful, stable and safe living in the republic. People believed me. I could not have failed them. At the meeting with the elders who came to Tsentroy from all the districts of the Chechen Republic I was also asked to run for the presidency. Their main demand was to end with the thugs, terrorists and religious extremists and restore a peaceful, stable and safe life in Chechnya. And they promised to support me. The people of Chechnya are tired of impudence of the thugs. Who are your voters? My voters are first and foremost the people of the Chechen Republic who encourage and support all my initiatives. The referendum has once again confirmed that. My thoughts and cares totally coincide with aspirations of ordinary people and it cannot be other way. I come from a religious family. None of my relatives ever occupied high offices. I am well aware of how people live, what they think and dream since I come from the same background. I meet with different layers of the population — farmers, workers, intelligentsia, youth, retired people, office employees, teachers, doctors and I always find their support. They are my voters. What is your perception of the current situation in Chechnya: the dilemma of Chechnya-Ichkeria, the situation with opposition and its effect on the current state of things? To what extent does the information presented in mass media correspond to the real situation in the republic? The situation in the republic still remains difficult. I expressed my concerns about the disappearances of civilians in Chechnya in my letters to the heads of the federal force ministries and the office of the General Prosecutor of Russia. Unknown people in camouflage declared a night hunt on the local residents. Their relatives cannot find out what happened to the dissappeared. This is a highly destabilizing factor. Currently we are planning to implement several measures, which are supposed to put an end to that. But this is a pain of my republic and my personal pain. As far as the dilemma Chechnya-Ichkeria is concerned, the March Referendum gave a clear answer to this question: the Chechen Republic is a constituent part of the Russian Federation and Chechens voted for the unity with Russia. It explains everything. It is the will of the Chechen people. Information, presented by journalists in central mass media is not uniform. Those covering the costs of paper editions and supporting TV and radio companies basically set the tone of these publications. Some media (I do not want to refer to concrete titles) tend to highlight the events in Chechnya only in black tones presenting the situation only from the negative perspective; others try to be more objective adding some light colors. But our life consists not of two colors only, it is diverse and multicolored. What real steps will you implement in case of your victory? I will be involved in the same activities I was carrying out before, with focus upon resorting peaceful life in Chechnya, build up the economics and social sphere. I will be implementing the initiated political processes of peaceful resolution in Chechnya. The President of Russia, V.Putin, fully supports me. Tell us about you election program. Is it possible to realize it? My election program is deriving from the reality, hopes and aspirations of the people. It is not huge and is made up of three different components. By the way, I dwell upon them in my recent dissertation on the settlement of Russian-Chechen relations. Three main points of the peace settlement are stressed in the thesis and in the program as well: trust of the federal centre to our republic, as we have to be a part of Russia; reconstruction of all economic and social objects with the total financial and material support of the federal centre. All our natural resources, including oil, must be in a disposal of the republic, so that we could partly use our own recourses in the process of economic and social reconstruction. I recently reminded Mr. Kasyanov, Chair of the Russian Government, about this once again, and also asked him to foresee certain economic, financial, tax and other privileges. If Moscow denies to do so and will continue financing the reconstruction work in the republic as before, the republic can hardly be restored from the ruins in the short run, and I directly told Mr. Putin and Mr. Kasyanov about it to. They assured me that the privileges would be granted. As far as the question of distribution of powers between the Russian Federation and the Chechen Republic is concerned, a special person responsible for resolving this issue was appointed in the Administration of the RF President, so this issue will be solved. Who you consider to be your main rival? Nobody. I see only one candidate for the presidency of the Chechen Republic — Kadyrov. Today a weak leader will not gain a firm hold on the republic. We needs a person, who, if necessary, would be courageous enough to stand against thugs with arms in hands. It has been 11 years that we are living by the savage laws — laws of a wolf pack, when the strong one unmercifully suppresses the weak and unprotected one. Unfortunately, we all got used to this. And now one needs a person who could take responsibility to call people to restore the order and follow the adequate norms of behavior. He has to have a sober head and pure thoughts. That implies that he has to take decisions thoughtfully, not in a hurry, be sensible and kind, but at the same time when necessary and when it comes to violations and crimes, he should be able to show determination and firmness. I do not know anyone who would correspond to these characters. When taking a certificate in the Election Commission, I said that I would give up my intentions to stand for presidency if such a leader appeared and the people supported him. In that case, I would support him myself. How do you estimate you chances for success? The people want a peaceful, stable and secure life. I want the same. The elections are our historical chance. I trust my people. And I will agree with their choice. Which distinctive features of your election campaign will help you win? I already gave an answer to this question. I come from the core of my people. I know my people’s pain, hopes and aspirations. And the people take me as I am — I never left the republic, all my family stayed in Chechnya during the military action. The people see and appreciate it. I know what should be done and how to do. And my main task is the security of the people, the revival of the Republic, the wealth of my nation. There are the key points of my program. What do you think about the election campaigns of other candidates? I said from the beginning: equal conditions and equal possibilities should be created for everybody. I always follow this principle. Do you expect a fair ballot count? I do not think it will be the other way. I trust the members of the territory and district level election commissions. I trust the management of the Chechen Republic Election Commission. And hundreds of monitors will observe the voting. So I think there will no foul play. Your attitudes to the counter-terrorist operation (has it changed with the time)? I get your point. My attitudes to the counter-terrorsit operation were always straightforward and never changed. When illegal armed formations of Hattab and Basaev invaded Dagestan, I was the first to voice protest against it. Terrorism, thuggery and religious extremism do not have nationality. We have to combat this evil. The other thing is that we have to do it without endangering the lives of the peaceful population. Have you faced any difficulties or surprises during your election campaign? Difficulties and surprises are everywhere. All our life consists of them. Especially in Chechnya. But I got used to solving difficult questions, so it is no news for me. I am aware that I endanger my relatives, friends and my supporters by announcing the uncompromising war against terrorism, thuggery and religious extremism. But it is not possible to set up a peaceful, stable and secure life in Chechnya without it. And this is what I want for my suffering people — a peaceful, stable and secure life. And, if the Almighty’s willing, we’ll get our way. Back |
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