ACPC Rejects Chechen Presidential Election as Un-Democratic
Washington, DC: September 23, 2003 5:00 p.m. EDT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Daniel A. Pellathy, Tel. 202.296.2861 x205

The American Committee for Peace in Chechnya (ACPC) today rejected Chechnya's upcoming presidential election as un-democratic amidst credible reports that all serious opposition to the Moscow-back administrative head, Akhmad Kadyrov, has either withdrawn or been excluded from the race.

"In defiance of the very democratic norms it claims to uphold, the Kremlin has systematically removed all meaningful opposition to Kadyrov," said ACPC Executive Director Glen Howard. "It seems Moscow has abandoned even the pretext of a democratic election, opting instead to allow their candidate to run virtually unopposed. While the list of candidates has dwindled to a handful of unknown contenders, the chance for a free and fair election has all but disappeared."

Serious opposition to the Kadyrov regime had existed in the form of three major candidates. However, in a remarkable turn of events, two candidates have withdrawn, one to accept an advisory position in the Putin administration, while the third has been disqualified on a technicality.

"Built on the dubious foundation of the March 23rd constitutional referendum, it seems the upcoming election will fail to provide the mechanism so desperately needed for real political dialogue," Howard concluded.

With less than two weeks until the October 5th election, experts predict little in the way of a lasting political solution as the ACPC calls for a renewal of dialogue between the warring sides. "Meanwhile, Kadyrov, with Moscow's support, continues to brutally enforce an image of normalcy," said Howard.

Reports of military cleansing operations against Chechen refugees in neighboring Ingushetia persist, while the humanitarian crisis has reached catastrophic proportions with the suspension of running water and food shipments to displaced Chechens in Ingushetia.

Founded in 1999, the American Committee for Peace in Chechnya (ACPC) is a bipartisan coalition of distinguished Americans dedicated to promoting a peaceful end to the war in Chechnya.