Human rights defenders criticize Kurchaloi law enforcers for preventive conversations

A specific feature of police preventive conversations in Chechnya is the desire to humiliate offenders. This opinion was voiced by human rights defender Svetlana Gannushkina after law enforcers had reprimanded residents of the Kurchaloi District. Lawyer Yevgeny Chernousov note that the law enforcement bodies may make public videos of such conversations only with the offenders' consent.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in mid-August, the Chechen law enforcers gathered a group of offenders in the building of the Kurchaloi OVD (Interior Division) and recorded a preventive conversation on video. Such videos serve as reports to the authorities, local residents note.

Svetlana Gannushkina, the head of the "Civic Assistance Committee", criticized the format of preventive conversations chosen by the Chechen law enforcement bodies. "Conducting preventive conversations is even good, since it can yield results. The problem is that in Chechnya, human dignity is humiliated during preventive conversations," the human rights defender said.

By itself, conducting preventive conversations does not contradict the Russian law. However, a conversation may be recorded on video and made public only with the offender's consent, notes lawyer Yevgeny Chernousov, the retired Interior Ministry Colonel.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 17, 2020 at 05:50 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.