Picket against war in Chechnya starts in the centre of Moscow

Today at 5:30 p.m., in the Novopushkinskiy Mini-Park in the centre of Moscow, a picket against the war in Chechnya was organized by the Committee of Antiwar Actions and Antiwar Club. The news was telephoned to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by Anna Karetnikova, coordinator of the Antiwar Club and one of the event organizers. The action was sanctioned by the Prefecture of the Central Administrative District of the Russian capital and will last till 7 p.m.

So far, the picket is 15 persons strong. They are holding posters and banners: "War in Chechnya is a crime against humanity," "Freedom to Chechnya," "Taxpayer! Have you ordered a tank to Chechnya?" and so forth. Several activists are unfolding flags with inscription "STOP the Chechen war!" in the form of a road sign.

The opponents of the war in Chechnya are handing out leaflets with a summary of armed actions and casualties in the Republics of North Caucasus during the recent week, drawn up by the Antiwar Club and the editorial board of the Internet Site VoineNet.Ru on the basis of mass media messages. They are also gathering signatures under an appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin demanding to give the body of Aslan Maskhadov, leader of Chechen separatists murdered in March 2005, out to relatives for burial.

Pickets against war in Chechnya are held by activists of antiwar movement in Pushkin Square of Russian capital every Thursday at the same time almost from the very start of the second Chechen campaign in 1999.

Under a conservative estimate of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial," during the two wars in Chechnya, starting from 1994, the maximum casualties have made 75,000 civil persons and maximum 15,000 soldiers and members of federal power agencies, Alexander Cherkasov, member of the Board of the HRC "Memorial" informed the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.