Monday, July 17, 2006

Putin Wants Zakayev Extradited From U.K.

According to a RIAN report, Putin has told the G8 that he wants ChRI foreign minister Akhmed Zakayev extradited from the United Kingdom. In a statement remarkable for its open hypocrisy, Putin announced that
some countries had complicated legal systems and many criminal elements embroiled in terrorism used them to "destroy civilized countries and those fundamental principles on which today's civilization of democratic countries is founded."
Via chechnya-sl, where Mikael Storsjö has a critical response:
A lie repeated enough times becomes truth, as all alert observants of the Chechen fight have noticed in the Western society and media.

This became the fate of Shamil Basayev, who got a reputation of being the most notorious "terrorist" in Caucasus, although his unethical deeds caused fewer corpses among innocents than the Russian terror killed civilians, children and women already in Basaev's own family, not to speak about the 200.000+ of other victims.

According to Russian demagogy, Zakaev is also a terrorist. Every now and then we can read this statement in Russian media, soon it will become a legitimate statement in the West too. The power of Russian propaganda shall not be underestimated.
Mikael wants the evidence - if there is evidence - to be made public:
The accusations against Zakaev are apparently public documents? Does anybody have copy of these documents and "video footage". It might have a healthy impact upon media and Russian efforts if this material could be published comprehensively.

Probably there will be no proof at all regarding any guilt of Zakaev, but instead a revealing study of Russian justice in Putin's Russia.

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