Letter of the Soviet veteran Yelena Bonner to the US President Bill Clinton
"Deeply honoured, Mr. President.
The Chechen war, declared by Russia as a re-establishment of the constitution, goes four months now. During this time this war has turned into a genocide of the Chechen people.
The bombing and shelling took place in 245 settlements, 187 of which were practically destroyed, including the Chechen capital Grozny.
Forty-two thousand civilians were killed.
The total number of wounded is unknown, but 2,000 children are crippled; 2,500 are left without their parents.
There are also civil society organizations from Great Britain and the United States, but the Russian authorities don’t give permission for these children to leave the country.
The Interior Ministry and the army oppose humanitarian aid to Chechnya and the activities of the International Red Cross.
On 8 December tanks and flamethrowers were used to destroy the village of Samashki and kill civilians. Over 700 civilians were killed in Samashki.
During World War II Stalin's gang
tried to convince the world that the Poles in Katyn were shot by the Germans. Today the army and the Russian state security organs falsely claim that this crime against humanity were committed by the Chechens themselves.
You are flying to Russia to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Victory Day. This gives you the right to insist on a cessation of hostilities and immediate negotiations. with Gen. Dudayev, under the auspices of the UN, the OSCE, or your administration.
The initiative would have been a moral justification for your stay in Moscow in May, and would reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the protection of human rights. It would bring the enduring gratitude of the Chechen people and thousands of Russian mothers whose sons, children and grandchildren, victors of the Second World War - who continue to perish in this unprovoked bloody slaughter.
Sincerely, Yelena Bonner, veteran of World War II. Lieutenant in the Medical Service of the Soviet Army in 1941-1945.“
"Deeply honoured, Mr. President.
The Chechen war, declared by Russia as a re-establishment of the constitution, goes four months now. During this time this war has turned into a genocide of the Chechen people.
The bombing and shelling took place in 245 settlements, 187 of which were practically destroyed, including the Chechen capital Grozny.
Forty-two thousand civilians were killed.
The total number of wounded is unknown, but 2,000 children are crippled; 2,500 are left without their parents.
There are also civil society organizations from Great Britain and the United States, but the Russian authorities don’t give permission for these children to leave the country.
The Interior Ministry and the army oppose humanitarian aid to Chechnya and the activities of the International Red Cross.
On 8 December tanks and flamethrowers were used to destroy the village of Samashki and kill civilians. Over 700 civilians were killed in Samashki.
During World War II Stalin's gang
tried to convince the world that the Poles in Katyn were shot by the Germans. Today the army and the Russian state security organs falsely claim that this crime against humanity were committed by the Chechens themselves.
You are flying to Russia to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Victory Day. This gives you the right to insist on a cessation of hostilities and immediate negotiations. with Gen. Dudayev, under the auspices of the UN, the OSCE, or your administration.
The initiative would have been a moral justification for your stay in Moscow in May, and would reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the protection of human rights. It would bring the enduring gratitude of the Chechen people and thousands of Russian mothers whose sons, children and grandchildren, victors of the Second World War - who continue to perish in this unprovoked bloody slaughter.
Sincerely, Yelena Bonner, veteran of World War II. Lieutenant in the Medical Service of the Soviet Army in 1941-1945.“
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„I asked him:
What is this place called?
„Valerik“, he said,
Which means „the river of the dead“
And those who named it rest in heaven.
— „How many of them fought today?“
— „7,000“
— „How many did the Mountaineers lose?“
— „Who knows? Why would they be counted!“
„They’ll be counted“, I heard a voice reply.
„This day of blood will not be forgotten“.
I turned and saw the Chechen, nodding, with a grin of contempt upon his lips.“
Mikhail Lermontov, „Valerik“, 1840
What is this place called?
„Valerik“, he said,
Which means „the river of the dead“
And those who named it rest in heaven.
— „How many of them fought today?“
— „7,000“
— „How many did the Mountaineers lose?“
— „Who knows? Why would they be counted!“
„They’ll be counted“, I heard a voice reply.
„This day of blood will not be forgotten“.
I turned and saw the Chechen, nodding, with a grin of contempt upon his lips.“
Mikhail Lermontov, „Valerik“, 1840
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Towers and Petroglyphs from Sharoy, the pictures are approximately from the 1980s.
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Sharoy
In medieval times, Sharoy was a fortress with seven defense towers and it had several residential ones.
This early medieval fortress stood on an elevated place, at the intersection of the main routes from the Argun Gorge to Cheberloy, Kakheti and Dagestan. The towers served as unified signal system of Chechens. This system developed in the 12th-14th century.
The residential towers were blown up after the deportation of Chechens in 1944. One of the defense towers was destroyed by Russian bombing in 1995, during the First Russian-Chechen War.
On one of the buildings of Sharoy, an ancient petroglyph depicting a man with a dog is noticeable; the stone is much older than the building itself and, apparently, may belong to the Koban era.
In medieval times, Sharoy was a fortress with seven defense towers and it had several residential ones.
This early medieval fortress stood on an elevated place, at the intersection of the main routes from the Argun Gorge to Cheberloy, Kakheti and Dagestan. The towers served as unified signal system of Chechens. This system developed in the 12th-14th century.
The residential towers were blown up after the deportation of Chechens in 1944. One of the defense towers was destroyed by Russian bombing in 1995, during the First Russian-Chechen War.
On one of the buildings of Sharoy, an ancient petroglyph depicting a man with a dog is noticeable; the stone is much older than the building itself and, apparently, may belong to the Koban era.
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The first of June marks the International Children‘s day. This day is connected with children‘s rights and well-being, something that was ignored during the two Russian invasions in Chechnya.
However, one family who dedicated their life to save orphans and care for their well-being, was the Gatayev family.
Khadizhat and Malik Gatayev gained popularity for their deeds because of the book „Angels of Grozny“ by Åsne Seierstadt. The angel of Grozny is Khadizhat.
Thanks to her and her husband, 21 kids got gifted a new and loving family. She took them all in, despite not having enough resources or help, but she didn’t abandon them and even moved with all of them to Latvia. However, in Latvia 6 of the children were taken away from the family and in the foster home, they forbade them to have contact with the Gatayev family and to speak Chechen or Russian. Trying to disconnect them from their family. The children didn’t forget their adoptive family, though. One of the girls, Kheda Chinkhoeva, even ran away from the orphanage and broke into the Finnish Embassy to ask for help, since the Gatayev family had to flee to Finnland. Unfortunately, the Finns couldn’t help them either, because of lack of blood ties.
Several years the Gatayevs tried to reunite but without any luck.
However, according to Kavkaz Reali they’re not giving up.
However, one family who dedicated their life to save orphans and care for their well-being, was the Gatayev family.
Khadizhat and Malik Gatayev gained popularity for their deeds because of the book „Angels of Grozny“ by Åsne Seierstadt. The angel of Grozny is Khadizhat.
Thanks to her and her husband, 21 kids got gifted a new and loving family. She took them all in, despite not having enough resources or help, but she didn’t abandon them and even moved with all of them to Latvia. However, in Latvia 6 of the children were taken away from the family and in the foster home, they forbade them to have contact with the Gatayev family and to speak Chechen or Russian. Trying to disconnect them from their family. The children didn’t forget their adoptive family, though. One of the girls, Kheda Chinkhoeva, even ran away from the orphanage and broke into the Finnish Embassy to ask for help, since the Gatayev family had to flee to Finnland. Unfortunately, the Finns couldn’t help them either, because of lack of blood ties.
Several years the Gatayevs tried to reunite but without any luck.
However, according to Kavkaz Reali they’re not giving up.
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