Week in the Caucasus: review of the main events on December 5-11, 2022

Refutation of information about the murder of Chechen blogger, Tumso Abdurakhmanov; persecution of protesters under the article on discrediting Russian Armed Forces; situation with the Azerbaijani opposition; and a new wave of protests in defence of Saakashvili in Georgia, – see the review of these and other events in the Caucasus during the week of December 5-11, 2022, prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Tumso Abdurakhmanov is alive

On December 9, a number of European outlets, citing the sources in Munich, reported that the Chechen blogger, Tumso Abdurakhmanov, who lives in Sweden, is alive. His disappearance had to do with the trial at the Munich Higher Land Court of the case on the preparations for the assassination of Tumso's brother; the trial is held under unprecedented security measures. This was reported by Radio Sweden and the German outlet Augsburger Allgemeine. The press service of the government of Ichkeria has also confirmed this information.

Interestingly, the day before, after a long silence of Chechen officials, Chingiz Akhmadov, the director of the "Grozny" TV Channel, said that Akhmed Zakaev, who was criticized by Tumso, was behind the possible Abdurakhmanov's murder. Akhmadov linked the assassination attempt on Tumso with the creation of a political party and added that Zakaev had earlier openly threatened his critics.

Discrediting cases in Southern Russia

On December 11, the Yeysk District Court (Krasnodar Territory) found Vladimir Shishkov, a local resident, guilty under the article on discrediting the armed forces of the Russian Federation and imposed a fine on him. On the same day, cases under this article against Evgeny Kirichenko, a resident of Sochi, and Sergey Sosnov, a resident of Armavir, were submitted to courts.

The day before, Valery Badmaev, the editor-in-chief of the "Sovremennaya Kalmykia" outlet, became a suspect within a criminal case on discrediting Russian militaries; the court forbade him to use the Internet, telephone, and mail. On December 9, the 72-year-old journalist was detained. At the same time, Alexander Dudnikov, a resident of Sochi, told the "Caucasian Knot" about the persecution of his wife Valeria by law enforcers after her pacifist posts in social networks. A protocol was drawn up on discrediting the Russian Army was drawn up against a 21-year-old disabled person from the Otradnensky District of the Krasnodar Territory for his comment posted on the YouTube.

On December 8, Ruslan Narushev, a resident of Volgograd, was fined for placing banners, the text thereof was treated by the court as discrediting Russian militaries. Two days before, Alexander Gorelov, a resident of Adler, was taken to the police station because of a pacifist sticker on his car. He was ordered to get photographed and was released. On December 5, the court fined Ivan Tsikunov, a resident of Slavyansk-on-Kuban; and the administrative case against Vyacheslav Tolstonozhenko arrived in the Volzhsky City Court.

On March 4, 2022, Russia introduced administrative liability for discrediting the Russian Armed Forces; and social network commentators and participants in pacifist actions are now at risk of prosecutions.

Persecutions of Azeri oppositionists

On December 11, it was reported that Talekh Bagirzade, the leader of the Muslim Unity movement, stopped his hunger strike on the 16th day due to the deterioration of his health condition and improvement of the situation in the colony. The Bagirzade's hunger strike has partially achieved its goal, his associates have regarded.

On December 9, Baku policemen detained Bakhtiyar Gadjiev, the head of the Institute for Public Policy and the NGO "Positive Changes", who was accused of hooliganism and contempt of the court. "Bakhtiyar Gadjiev, a former prisoner of conscience, has been arrested again. He faces up to three years in prison on politically motivated charges. He must be released immediately," the human rights organization Amnesty International has stated.

On December 6, Mirtofig Guseinov, a member of the Muslim Unity Movement, was detained. Law enforcers concealed his whereabouts for several days. On December 7, it became known that he was arrested for three months within a drug dealing case. The Movement has treated his detention as a continuation of a new wave of activists' persecutions.

On December 6, the Ganja Court overturned the verdicts to 19 convicts within the "Terter case" and sent the case for retrial. Ten of them were released after full acquittal; and nine were released due to the expiration of the statute of limitations for their criminal cases. The court also dismissed the cases against the two deceased defendants.

Ivanishvili would not let Saakashvili go

The relations of the current government and the opposition have aggravated again because of the health condition of Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, a former Georgian President. The reason was in a visit on December 4 by a medical council to Saakashvili in the Tbilisi clinic; the doctors stated that his health condition had worsened despite the treatment. They recommended that Saakashvili be transferred to a foreign clinic for treatment, pointing out that his life was in danger.

Irakli Garibashvili, the Georgian Prime Minister, has stated that the demands of Saakashvili's supporters to transfer him abroad for treatment are aimed at releasing the country's third president from custody. The Premier was supported by Raati Bregadze, the Minister of Justice.

The court session to decide whether Saakashvili's sentence should be suspended, or he should be released was scheduled for December 9. Saakashvili's mother called on his supporters to gather outside the courthouse. But the court postponed the session till December 14, in order to get ready for remote participation of the defendant in the trial. The court announced its decision amid an action of oppositionists, who came to support the ex-president. One person, who insulted Saakashvili's supporters, was detained at the action.