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The Chechen Republic (Russian: Чеченская Республика; Chechen: Нохчийн Республика/Noxçiyn Respublika), also known as Chechnya (Russian: Чечня, Chechen: Нохчичьо/Noxçiyçö), Chechnia or Chechenia, is a constituent republic of the Russian Federation. Bordering Stavropol Krai to the northwest, the republic of Dagestan to the northeast and east, Georgia to the south, and the republics of Ingushetia and North Ossetia to the west, it is located in the Northern Caucasus mountains, in the Southern Federal District.
During the collapse of the Soviet Union, a group of Chechen leaders declared themselves to be the lawful government, announced a new parliament, and declared independence as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. As of 2004, their independence is not recognized by any relevant state. This declaration has led to armed conflicts in which rival Chechen groups and the Russian Federal army were involved.
Reportedly, the pro-Moscow officials admit (see external links) that since 1994 over 200,000 insurgents and civilians have been killed, and in the same period over 20,000 children have been killed in Chechnya and tens of thousands more became orphans.
History
Main article: History of Chechnya
A part of the Russian Empire since 1859, the region of Chechnya and its neighbor, Ingushetia, was incorporated as the Checheno-Ingushkaya Autonomous Soviet-Socialist Republic during the founding of the Soviet Union. Over the course of Soviet rule, the Chechens endured a forced deportation of the whole population to the Kazakh SSR (later Kazakhstan) during World War II. They were only allowed to return to their homeland in 1957. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, an independence movement formed in Chechnya, while Russia refused to allow the secession.
Dzhokhar Dudayev, the Republic of Chechnya's nationalist president, declared Chechnya's independence from Russia in 1991. In 1994 Russian President Boris Yeltsin ordered 40,000 troops to prevent the separation of the southern oil-producing region of Chechnya from Russia (see First Chechen War).
Russia was quickly submerged in a quagmire like that of the Soviets in Afghanistan. Chechen insurgents inflicted humiliating losses on Russia's demoralized and ill-equipped troops. Russian troops had not secured the Chechen capital of Grozny by year's end. The Russians finally managed to gain control of Grozny in February 1995 after heavy fighting. In August 1996 Yeltsin agreed to a ceasefire with Chechen leaders, and a peace treaty was formally signed in May 1997.
The conflict resumed in 1999, thus rendering the 1997 peace accord meaningless (see Second Chechen War). Chechen separatists still claim an independent Chechnya and have orchestrated terrorist attacks in Chechnya and other regions of Russia, including Moscow and Beslan. A decade of war has left most of Chechnya under the control of the federal military. Fighting between the military and Chechen terrorists continues.
Politics
Main article: Politics of Chechnya
Chechnya is considered an independent republic by its separatists, and a federal republic by its federalists. Its regional constitution was entered into effect on April 2, 2003 after an all-Chechen referendum was held on March 23, 2003.
Chechnya_and_Caucasus.png
Since 1990, the Chechen Republic has had legal, military, and civil conflicts involving the separatist movements. However, the current government of the Chechen Republic meets most laws of Checheno-Ingushkaya ASSR, the Chechen Republic, and the Russian Federation. This compromise is considered by some to be pro-federal government. Despite popular belief, most Chechen citizens see the Chechen Republic as being within the Russian Federation (more than 70% by independent and even anti-Russian polls).
The former separatist warlord, Akhmad Kadyrov, looked upon as a traitor by separatists, was elected president with 83% of the vote in an internationally monitored election on October 5, 2003. There were claims, however, of ballot stuffing and voter intimidation by Russian soldiers and the exclusion of separatist parties from the polls made by the OSCE. Rudnik Dudayev is head of the Chechen Security Council and Anatoly Popov is the Prime Minister. On May 9, 2004, Kadyrov was assassinated in a Grozny stadium by a landmine explosion that was planted beneath a VIP stage and detonated during a World War II memorial parade. Sergey Abramov was appointed to the position of acting president after the incident.
On August 29, 2004 a new Presidential election took place. According to the Chechen electoral commission, Alu Alkhanov, former Chechen Minister of Interior, received approximately 74% of the vote. Voter turnout was 85.2%. Some observers, such as the U.S. Department of State, International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, as well as the opposition, question the election, citing, in part, the disqualification of the major rival Malik Saidullayev on a technicality. Polling conditions were also questioned, but no formal complaints have been made. The election was internationally monitored by the Commonwealth of Independent States and Arab League; western monitors didn't participate in monitoring the election despite being invited.
In addition to the elected government, there is a self-proclaimed separatist government that is not recognized by any state (although members have been given political asylum in European and Arab countries, as well as the United States.) The president of this government is Aslan Maskhadov, the Foreign Minister is Ilyas Akhmadov, who is the spokeman for Aslan Maskhadov. Ilyas Akhmadov is currently living under asylum in the United States. Aslan Maskhadov was elected in an internationally monitored election in 1997 for 4 years, when the separatists were a major political force. In 2001 he issued a decree prolonging his office for one additional year; he was unable to participate in the 2003 presidential election, since separatist parties were said to be barred, and Maskhadov facing accusations of "terrorist offences" in Russia for his involvement in separatist wars. Maskhadov left Grozny and moved to the separatist-controlled areas of the south at the onset of the Second Chechen War. President Maskhadov was unable to influence a number of warlords who retain effective control over Chechen territory, and his power was diminished as a result. Most probably, any actions of Maskhadov's government, or even its disappearance, would not materially change the current situation in the Chechen Republic.
Akhmed Zakayev, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Aslan Maskhadov, was appointed by President Maskhadov shortly after the 1997 election. He is currently living under asylum in Britain.
Some territories are or were controlled by regional teips.
Administrative Division
Districts
Chechnya Republic consists of the following districts (Russian: районы):
- Naursky (Наурский)
- Shelkovskoy (Шелковской)
- Nadterechny (Надтеречный)
- Groznensky (Грозненский)
- Gudermessky (Гудермесский)
- Sunzhensky (Сунженский)
- Achkhoy-Martanovsky (Ачхой-Мартановский)
- Urus-Martanovsky (Урус-Мартановский)
- Shalinsky (Шалинский)
- Kurchaloyevsky (Курчалоевский)
- Itum-Kalinsky (Итум-Калинский)
- Shatoysky (Шатойский)
- Vedensky (Веденский)
- Nozhay-Yurtovsky (Ножай-Юртовский)
- Sharoysky (Шаройский)
Major settlements
- Znamenskoye
- Naurskaya
- Achkhoy-Martan
- Urus-Martan
- Grozny
- Shali
- Gudermes
- Shelkovskaya
- Itum-Shale
- Shatoy
- Vedeno
- Nozhay-Yurt
Geography
- Population: 1.3 million
- Area: 19,300 km²
- Borders:
Rivers:
Time zone
Chechnya is located in the Moscow Time Zone (MSK/MSD). UTC offset is +0300 (MSK)/+0400 (MSD).
Economy
As of 2003
During the war, the Chechen economy fell apart. Gross domestic product, if reliably calculable, would be only a fraction of the prewar level. Problems with the Chechen economy had an effect on the federal Russian economy - a number of financial crimes in 1990s were committed using Chechen financial organizations. Chechnya has the highest ratio within Russian Federation of financial operations made in US Dollars to operations in Russian Roubles. There are many counterfeit US Dollars printed there. The separatists planned to put into circulation a new currency, the Nahar, but the Federal army prevented them.
As an effect of the war approximately 80% of economic potential of Chechnya was destroyed. The only branch of economy that has been rebuilt so far is the petroleum industry. The 2003 oil production was estimated at 1.5 million metric tons (or 30 thousand barrels) per day, down from the top of 4 million metric tons per day in the 1980s. The 2003 production constituted approximately 0.6% of the total oil production in Russia. The level of unemployment is 76%. Despite economic improvements, smuggling and bartering are still occupations of a significant part of the population. [1] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4091635.stm)
According to the federal government in Moscow over 2 billion dollars were spent on the reconstruction of the Chechen economy since 2000. However, according to the Russian central economic control agency (Schyotnaya Palata), not more than 350 million dollars were spent as intended.
Demographics
Most Chechens are Sunni Muslim, the country having converted to that faith between the 16th and the 18th century. At the end of the Soviet era, ethnic Russians were about 23 percent of the population (269,000 in 1989); however, war and social conflict led most Russians to flee Chechnya during the 1990s. At the close of the 1990s, about 60,000 remained.
The languages used in the Republic are Chechen and Russian. Chechen belongs to the Vaynakh or North-central Caucasian linguistic family, which also includes Ingush and Batsb. Some scholars place it in a wider Iberian-Caucasian super-family.
Chechnya has one of the youngest populations in the generally aging Russian Federation; in the early 1990s, it was among the few regions experiencing natural population growth.
- Population: 1,103,686 (2002)
- Urban: 373,177 (33.8%)
- Rural: 730,509 (66.2%)
- Male: 532,724 (48.3%)
- Female: 570,962 (51.7%)
- Average age: 22.7 years
- Urban: 22.8 years
- Rural: 22.7 years
- Male: 21.6 years
- Female: 23.9 years
- Number of households: 195,304 (with 1,069,600 people)
- Urban: 65,741 (with 365,577 people)
- Rural: 129,563 (with 704,023 people)
See also
External links
Further reading
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