29 August 2024, 22:14
Investigators take formal actions to react to protests by friends of disappeared Chechen native Seda Suleimanova
The fate of Seda Suleimanova remains on everyone’s lips thanks to pickets and information activity. The law enforcement bodies had to institute a criminal case in connection with the Seda Suleimanova’s disappearance, although there has been no progress in the investigation, activists believe. The actions of the policemen who sent Seda Suleimanova to Chechnya contain signs of at least three crimes, a lawyer emphasizes.
The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that Lena Patyaeva requested the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) to institute a criminal case in connection with the kidnapping of her friend Seda Suleimanova a year ago. Law enforcers detained Seda Suleimanova in Saint Petersburg and allowed her to be sent to Chechnya despite her words about the reprisals that threatened her, Lena Patyaeva stated. In June, Seda Suleimanova’s friend claimed that three months after the criminal case was instituted, investigators had not come to any conclusions.
“After April, they contacted me, but purely on a formal issue, asking about Seda’s belongings ... In essence, they did not contact me on other important issues,” Lena Patyaeva reported.
According to her story, during the questioning of a Seda Suleimanova’s fiancé, it became clear that the ICRF acknowledged the fact of the Seda’s abduction by unidentified policemen.
A lawyer from the “Memorial” Centre for Human Rights Defence* believes that the actions of the Saint Petersburg policemen can be assessed as negligence and abuse of office.
Alexandra Miroshnikova, the press secretary for the “SK SOS Crisis Group”*, notes the importance of public attention to the story of the Seda Suleimanova’s abduction.
“First of all, it is important to share the Seda’s story and talk about the girl. We see that her relatives are doing everything possible to make the case forgotten. In Chechnya, they do not like publicity. It was public pressure that led to the institution of a criminal case. Perhaps, it will someday help us to find out what really happened to Seda,” Alexandra Miroshnikova stated.
According to her report, even a visit to the Seda Suleimanova’s home will not yield any results. “The doors of the Seda’s home will be closed to journalists and human rights defenders. Moreover, their visits can be dangerous. There are already similar precedents, when journalists tried to talk to relatives of Marina Yandieva, who escaped from domestic violence, and their attempt did not result in anything good,” the press secretary for the “SK SOS Crisis Group”* recalled.
On October 25, 2023, Alyona Sadovskaya, a journalist of the “Caucasian Knot”, and her colleague Lilian Rubtsova were attacked in Ingushetia when they arrived to prepare a story about the Marina Yandieva’s escape from domestic violence. The journalists were then detained by law enforcers and released after questioning.
Saida Sirazhudinova, the President of the Centre for Studying Global Issues of Modernity and Regional Problems “Caucasus. World. Development”, also notes the importance of the role of the public. At the same time, Saida Sirazhudinova believes that in the current realities, it will be difficult to establish the whereabouts of Seda Suleimanova.
*As reported on the website of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the reason for including on March 1, 2024, the unregistered “Memorial” Centre for Human Rights Defence (CHRD) into the roster of foreign agents was the spread of “inaccurate information aimed at creating a negative image of the Russian Federation, as well as the Russian Armed Forces.”
**Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 28, 2024 at 11:01 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Roman Kuzhev Source: СK correspondent
