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Humanitarian Operations in Chechnya and Ingushetia - NGOs - Global policy Forum Humanitarian Operations in Chechnya and Ingushetia
By Petr Kostohryz
Reuters AlertNet
October 9, 2002
1. INTRODUCTION
The People in Need Foundation is a Prague-based non-governmental, non-profit organization. PINF has operated in Chechnya in 1994-95 and again since January 2000.
2. GENERAL SITUATION
Throughout the month of September the security situation in the region has deteriorated again, with fighting erupting in various locations in Chechnya and, for the first time since the beginning of the conflict, even in Ingushetia. Tensions between Russia and Georgia also further escalated to an omnipresent threat of military operations being started at the Russian-Georgian border. On September 9, the suspension of humanitarian activities on the territory of the Chechen Republic was lifted.
Chechnya
The situation in Chechnya was marked by constant instability, with local fights taking place in various places in Chechnya. Several heads of local administration were assassinated by unknown perpetrators, including the head of administration of Nadterechnyi region of Chechnya, which so far has been considered a safe zone. In the end of the month escalation of fighting in bordering areas with Ingushetia, Achkoi-Martanovski region and in Kurchaloi region was reported. Increased military activities in the south-western part of Chechnya also led to closing of the federal highway to Grozny. On September 12, a shoot-out between the federal soldiers and local militia and OMON forces took place in the center of Grozny, following a collision between a federal armored vehicle and a public bus. On September, another public bus exploded on a mine near the central market in Grozny claiming lives of 24 civilians.
Ingushetia
Fierce fighting erupted on September 26 near the Ingush village of Galashki marking so far unseen military activity on the Ingush territory. This followed after a group of fighters, allegedly lead by the infamous Chechen field commander Ruslan Gelayev, crossed the border from North Ossetia, attempting to reach Chechnya. The Chechen armed group, comprising of some 200 fighters, shot down a Russian military helicopter and clashed with federal troops, local militia and OMON units. About 6 000 inhabitants of Galashki fled the area while the surrounding fields and forests were shelled and bombed by the artillery.
Since late August, representatives of the Federal Migration Service repeatedly visited Imam IDP camp in Aki-Yurt, northern Ingushetia, to inform the inhabitants that the camp will soon be closed and exerting pressure on the IDPs to leave. The international humanitarian community reminded the local authorities about the necessity to stick to the principle of voluntary movement of IDPs. At the same time, the tent camp inhabitants launched an extensive campaign for being able to stay in the camp. Several families agreed to be resettled to other temporary accommodation sites in Ingushetia, which, however, are not fit for living and need substantial reconstruction, as UNHCR assessment indicated. By the end of the month, the future of the Aki-Yurt camp was still uncertain, although the representatives of the migration services verbally assured the humanitarian community that the voluntary principles of IDP resettlement will be adhered to and those IDPs who will not expressly wish to leave the camp will be allowed to stay there.
At the same time, however, the rhetoric of the federal and local authorities does not change and the emphasis is given to the fact that it is unacceptable for Russian citizens to live in a canvass dwelling for as long a period of time as has been the case with the Chechen IDPs. The international humanitarian was also repeatedly addressed with a request to assist in reconstruction of temporary accommodations points and centers both in Ingushetia and in Chechnya.
3. HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE
All non life-saving humanitarian operations on the territory of the Chechen Republic were suspended on July 30 following an abduction of the head of the humanitarian organization Druzhba and head of the Swiss branch of the Medecins sans Frontiers. The suspension was officially lifted on September 9. However, no information about the whereabouts of the missing aid workers is known.
After one month of interruption of work on the Chechen territory the humanitarian community re-launched its humanitarian programs in the republic aimed at ensuring basic living needs of the war-affected population. Still before the September 9, the WFP re-started the August distribution of food commodities in Chechnya.
The international humanitarian community retained its focus on the Temporary accommodation centers (TAC’s) in Chechnya where IDPs from Ingushetia and northern Chechnya were resettled. According to WHO data, out of 15 000 spots at the currently opened TAC’s in Grozny, 14 772 were occupied in early September, although sanitary and water condition in some of the TAC’s remained to be alarming. The UN agencies continue to refrain from providing humanitarian assistance to the TAC’s as this is the responsibility of the local authorities, although some relief agencies are actively working in the centers and covering basic needs of their inhabitants.
4. PINF ACTIVITIES IN CHECHNYA AND INGUSHETIA
Chechnya
Food distribution in Grozny (WFP)
On September 9, PINF has transported the last convoy of the August distribution cycle to three districts if Grozny and the distribution continued till September 12. Immediately afterwards the September distribution cycle was started, which lasted till the end of the month, i.e. has to be prolonged as the beneficiary turnout at the distribution points was very low in the beginning of the distribution due to a too short interval between August and September distribution. Also, the WFP relief distribution ration changed both in August and in September in accordance with the availability of food commodities in stock.
In the month of September the number of returnees from Ingushetia in PINF assisted areas increased, reaching almost 1000. These are beneficiaries, who, while still in Ingushetia, officially apply for being de-registered from distribution lists in Ingushetia and registered in Chechnya, on the basis of which they are granted three months of WFP food aid. In this period each returnee household is assessed by the monitors of the Danish Refugee Council (responsible for beneficiary registration) who decide whether the particular family will be found eligible for food assistance according to the selection criteria applied in all WFP assisted areas in Chechnya.
In recent months, various efforts have been made in the direction towards a more targeted approach to food distribution. One of those is an ongoing concentration on other than relief distribution, such as school feeding, food for work or institutional feeding. In September, PINF for the first time distributed food commodities to hospitals and kindergartens in Grozny in the framework of WFP Institutional feeding scheme. The selected institutions had been previously assisted by PINF on the basis of additional distribution lists in the end of each relief food distribution cycle. In the new program, the distribution became more formalized and regular, i.e. not dependent on the balance of stock in the end of relief distribution.
Food for work (WFP)
The food for work activities were re-started after over a month of halt by transportation of the food payment for July, which had not been distributed due to the suspension of operation in Chechnya. Since creation of working groups for food for work activities requires a long-term confidence-building with local administrations, institutions and individuals, one month of suspension was felt as a significant jeopardizing factor for their future development. The consolidation of food for work activities have however taken much less time than expected and the groups started to work almost immediately after the suspension was lifted.
In September, the food-for-work activities concentrated on three main activity areas: street cleaning and minor reconstruction; park cleaning and tree planting; school and other reconstruction. One additional activity was added and a new cooperating organization included into the project called Complex center of social assistance (KCSON). This institution takes care of elderly and handicapped in the form of home visits and psycho social consultations and, as other partners in the FFW project, has a list of employees who had not been working due to lack of finances for their salaries. Other organizations include PUZhKKh (“Housing and communal services” taking full care of major roads), SURSAD (taking care of minor roads) and ZELENSTROY (dealing with parks and all greenery). Second part of FFW working groups is recruited in private sector and works mainly with street cleaning activities. The third group of project participants includes a part of employees at PINF reconstruction sites.
In September, the food for work activities were also expanded territorially to include the Groznenskoselski (Grozny-rural) region of Chechnya, more specifically villages of Chechen Aul, Atagi and Tolstoy-Yurt. In cooperation with local administrations, working group were created in these villages and involved in street cleaning activities. In this sense, PINF has further strengthen its focus on community involvement in the food-for-work activities. Altogether in September a total of 741 workers have participated in the program, working for 12 353 man-days.
Emergency shelter program (UNHCR)
Due to the delays in procurement, it was agreed between UNHCR and PINF to reduce the target number of beneficiaries of the 2002 project to 1500, instead of 3500 planned, although at the end of its assessment PINF has registered almost 1800 potential beneficiaries.
The distribution of shelter UNHCR material was restarted in mid-September. By the end of September PINF has transported 27 350 roofing sheets, 1150 kg of roofing nails, 5100 m of ridge capping and 22 m3 of timber. By the end of the month almost all material was fully distributed. In the end of the 2001 program, over 51 000 pieces of roofing sheets were not distributed to the beneficiaries because of the procurement difficulties faced by the donor. The beneficiaries of the 2001 program were therefore served first in the in the month of September, as they had been waiting for this last portion of material for almost a year.
On the reception of the roofing materials, the beneficiaries are responsible for covering their roofs themselves. In September, a complete monitoring of the use of materials distributed in the framework of the 2001 program was carried out, revealing that the most frequent reasons for not utilizing the distributed materials are expectation of other, governmental, support and bad security condition, i.e. fear that the material would be destroyed again.
The UNHCR/PINF shelter program aims to provide roofing materials to vulnerable families living in the damaged Chechen capital Grozny and IDP families in Chechnya and other parts of North Caucasus who intend to return home but have not done so because of insufficient shelter conditions.
Rehabilitation of schools and health institutions in Chechnya (UNICEF, OSCE, “SOS Chechnya”)
Due to the suspension of the humanitarian operations in Chechnya, the reconstruction of schools No. 28 in Oktyabrski and No. 38 in Leninski district of Grozny, financed by UNICEF and OSCE, was only finished in mid-September. However, all precautions have been taken so that the students could normally start the new school year in the beginning of the month. At both schools, the number of students after the reconstruction was almost doubled, as some 500 new enrollment spots were created.
On September 2, the first school day of the new school year, official opening of the schools No. 7 and 16 in Grozny took place. The schools were rehabilitated by PINF between September 2001 and June 2002. While the school No. 16 was functioning during the reconstruction, the school No. 7 opened its doors to children for the first time in three years. The number of pupils have been increasing since the first school day, by the end of the month reaching 550 in a school that has a capacity to accommodate 1800 pupils in two shifts. In early September, the school was also visited by a delegation from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Reconstruction of health clinic No. 4 in Leninski district of Grozny and the health clinic in the village of Duba-Yurt, both started in July, continued at high speed throughout the month. Both clinics are being reconstructed from the funds collected within the “SOS Chechnya” public collection, announced by PINF in the Czech Republic in late 1999. In the period of two years, Czech public, municipalities and private enterprises have sent donations to PINF, which have so far been primarily used for funding of PINF’s medical programs in the North Caucasus. One part of this collection was earlier in the year 2002 allocated to support PINF’s reconstruction activities.
In September also, PINF started to rehabilitate the Kindergarten No. 54 in Staropromyslovski district of Grozny, which is currently not functioning and after the reconstruction should serve to up to 250 children partly residing in a neighboring Temporary accommodation center.With a completed full reconstruction of five schools and one kindergarten in Chechnya, PINF’s rehabilitation project is still the largest reconstruction initiative in the Chechen Republic.
Psycho-social assistance (WHO)
In September PINF opened three new psycho-social centers in newly rehabilitated schools No. 7, 28 and 38 in Grozny, which joined the already working centers at schools No. 14 (“Oasis” center) and 16 (“Dandelion” center). In all centers, professional psychologists carry out therapeutic sessions and provide individual consultations to pupils, their parents and teachers. The pupils either come themselves or are selected among the school pupils on the basis of their participation in PINF after-school activity program funded by UNICEF, upon recommendation from the school staff or requests from parents. The combination of after-school activities and psycho-social centers contributes to creation of safe and child-friendly space with an added aspect of non-formal education.
Group and individual therapy sessions are conducted in the centers, with involvement of pupils’ families to the extent possible. The work of PINF centers concentrates mainly on post-traumatic problems, however, a significant part of the work is also devoted to the prevention of drug abuse and AIDS.
Chechen culture project (UNICEF)
In the Chechen culture project, supported by UNICEF, a series of after-school activities are organized at PINF reconstructed state schools No. 7, 14 and 16 in Grozny, offering the children a range of possibilities to spend their spare time and to unfold their personality in safe surroundings and under guidance of skilled and professional supervisors. In September, the project was expanded to the newly reconstructed school No. 7 in Grozny, which is now the central school of the Chechen capital. In the framework of this project, some 200 pupils from 6 to 16 years take part in 86 hours a week of after school activities ranging from wrestling and dance to fine arts and English lessons. Special emphasis is put on cultural and traditional aspects of the Chechen society such as dancing, singing or national sports.
Cellar people - ”Podvalshchiki”
The support to this special group of most vulnerable inhabitants of Grozny has continued throughout the whole month. The project benefits approximately 850 people, including children, elderly and handicapped, who are regularly visited by PINF monitors in Grozny and provided with all basic assistance ranging from WFP dry food distribution, distribution of cloths and other non-food items to medical care and psycho-social consultations. Only a negligible part of these people have possessed proper IDs, let alone documentation certifying their handicap or vulnerability status, which virtually excluded them from any assistance either by the state administration or other agencies. All have been identified and assessed on individual basis and provided various kinds of assistance, purchased by PINF or donated by UN agencies or other NGOs in the region. In September, PINF has continuously distributed food rations, hygienic items, winter clothes, shoes and medicine. PINF’s continuous emphasis on assisting the beneficiaries in securing proper documents resulted by the end of the month in registering almost 40 per cent for regular relief food distribution. These beneficiaries still receive non-food items from PINF.
PINF has also started to facilitate an assistance project of a Czech NGO Berkat that aims at providing special assistance to selected poorest “cellar people” in order to cover their particular needs. This special assistance program is locally managed and implemented by PINF.In September PINF published a spcial report on its assistance to and the needs of this special cathegory of beneficiaries.
Ingushetia
School network in Ingushetia (UNICEF)
Classes in PINF-operated schools in Ingushetia re-started after the summer holidays on September 2. After the beginning of the new school year, one PINF tented school was closed down due to a significant decrease of pupils, while five new schools were opened, all situated in newly created spontaneous settlements. These are inhabited predominantly by IDPs who had been evicted from other locations in Ingushetia, however, a significant number of the IDPs arrived recently from Chechnya, most frequently following “mopping up” operations in their settlements.
In the context of the events in the Aki-Yurt camp in northern Ingushetia, PINF has received a plea from the teacher staff and pupils of PINF school in the camp, including all pupils’ signatures for, retaining the tent camp. The letter was handed over to UNICEF. PINF school in Aki-Yurt is attended by 210 pupils.
PINF alternative tented and wooden schools in Ingushetia, providing educational opportunities to over 1700 pupils, constitute the largest alternative educational network in the republic.
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