Even as President Boris Yeltsin took a hardline stance on Chechnya in his address to the nation on Tuesday, a number of leading figures in politics and culture spoke out about the intervention in the press. Below are excerpts from statements by Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Shakhrai, the writers Vladimir Voinovich and Georgy Vladimov and human rights commissioner and Duma deputy Sergei Kovalyov, as well as a brief account from an anonymous Russian bomber pilot.
Sergei Shakhrai
The federal authorities have resorted to force in order to restore constitutionality and law and order. But force is a tool that brings results only when it is used quickly, precisely and with minimal losses. Under the current conditions of overall collapse and the lack of coordination and our former ability to plan more than one "move" ahead, the crisis in Chechnya not only threatens to provoke a fatal crisis for the government and constitution of Russia, but even to set up a "geopolitical resonance" that could wipe Russia off the map as an independent historical entity.
When politics is transformed into warfare, it becomes difficult to make decisions: Not even the most beautiful constitution is worth "the tears of a child." But not to take a decision, to shirk one's responsibility, is also a crime.
What should be done next? The first step is to demilitarize the territory of Chechnya by capturing or destroying heavy weaponry and halting the activity of illegal armed formations. In order to avoid unnecessary victims, it should be possible to undertake negotiations with Dudayev and other commanders concerning disarmament. Such negotiations would not be political, but would be like talks with hijackers holding hostages.
At the same time, control must be restored to the federal authorities throughout the republic. The railroad must be opened and made safe. This is vital since without this railroad, the threat of hunger in Dagestan and the North Caucasus republics is very real.
Only as a final step -- and only if absolutely necessary -- can there be worked out an agreement on regulating the authority of the federal authorities with regard to local organs of government.
Rossiiskaya Gazeta, Dec. 27
Vladimir Voinovich
Even before the beginning of what is euphemistically called the Chechen conflict, it was clear even to a first-year student at the Suvorov Military Academy that direct confrontation with a recalcitrant nation could only turn into an all-out war with incalculable losses on both sides. This is clear to anyone who has read Tolstoy or Lermontov and who can imagine the character of these mountain peoples and the conditions under which we will have to fight them, as well as to anyone who remembers Afghanistan.
But all the same, we have gone in. And again the bombs are flying, homes are being destroyed and human bodies are being transformed into bloody bits. And the more obvious the senselessness of the war becomes, the more attempts we see to shut the mouths of journalists and to present official lies as truth. This, even though everyone who is not a complete idiot knows that lies have not helped win a single war throughout human history.
I personally am not automatically against every use of force. Regimes that blatantly violate human rights, that execute people without trials, that foment terrorism, must be brought under the law by a superior force. But such force must be used judiciously against the guilty, and not arbitrarily against everyone.
They are still saying that it is not too late to resolve the conflict politically. It is good to stop madness whenever you can. But the dead cannot be brought back to life and the crippled cannot be given back their arms and legs. And the hatred toward Russia has now reached such a high temperature that it will certainly last at least 100 years -- or until the next generation of generals comes up with another brilliant military operation that will inevitably turn out to be more complicated than they anticipated.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
Georgy Vladimov
Fifteen years ago, in January 1980, we gathered in the Sakharovs' apartment and composed the Helsinki Group's famous "Afghanistan" document, an appeal to the world community to do everything possible to stop the Soviet intervention. It was signed by eight people, later joined by six more. A tiny handful of protest.
But it was enough to destroy the silent "unanimous agreement." But the world community was somewhat different then. "Fraternal assistance" was called aggression and "armed formations," freedom fighters. Today no one is helping the Chechens and we do not even know to whom we are appealing.
U.S. President Bill Clinton considers Chechnya an internal Russian matter, in which the West should not interfere. German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel, although they regret the loss of life and property, have not attempted to speak to Yeltsin bluntly out of concern for the state of Russian/German relations. Bill is repeating Brezhnev's old line about not interfering in internal affairs, and Helmut and Klaus don't want to make Boris mad.
The war in Chechnya, simultaneously a civil war and a national struggle, is also becoming a religious war, a jihad. We must not forget that, in Afghanistan, as soon as Islam began calling for victory over the "infidels," it became impossible to overcome their fighting spirit. Now volunteers from throughout the Caucasus are already rushing to share the fate of the unfortunate Chechnya. If this war is not ended immediately, it may well turn into a war between Islam and Christians. Participation in a third world war in a single century would mean the end for Russia as a state and as a family of nations.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
Sergei Kovalyov
Sergei Kovalyov, the Duma deputy and human rights commissioner, is considered by many to be heir to the legacy of human rights activist Andrei Sakharov. He has been in Grozny through most of the fighting and has made daily appeals to Yeltsin to end the bloodshed. In the excerpt below, he responds to Defense Ministry charges that ethnic Russians are being held hostage in Chechnya.
What does that mean, "hostages?" Some Russians aren't even trying to go anywhere; others would happily leave, but there is nowhere for them to go. And in today's situation, it really is a problem: How can they get out? In this sense, the entire civilian population is being held hostage since it is being subjected to barbaric bombings. Bombs are falling randomly, leaving behind large numbers of innocent civilian victims.
To hear the reports that the government is constantly making through the mass media, a criminal gang has seized power here and is holding the civilian population in fear and subjection. And here come the rescuers! But how should people sent to rescue hostages act? There are special methods for dealing with hostage-takers and terrorists. But now they are striking with full force against the hostages themselves. Are they liberating them? No, they are destroying them. And how are the terrorists dealing with us hostages? They are constantly trying to protect us, to convince us to take shelter, etc. And our liberators are raining bombs on our heads.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
One Pilot's Nightmare
It is difficult for a normal person to understand the state I am in. When blood really starts flowing, you become satanic. Your mind changes, petrifies. No, it is impossible to express in words. The hardest thing is beginning to kill. After that, everything just goes like in a nightmare and you cannot do anything to stop it.
The majority of pilots are expecting an order to end the fighting. No one wants their names in the papers: They are afraid of shame and of Chechen revenge. They combat the psychological stress with vodka. The longer the madness continues, the clearer they see what kind of situation this is. When I hear the desperation of that Duma deputy in Grozny [Kovalyov], I begin to understand the horror of what is going on. I am afraid to read the papers or watch television for fear that I will go mad.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
Sergei Shakhrai
The federal authorities have resorted to force in order to restore constitutionality and law and order. But force is a tool that brings results only when it is used quickly, precisely and with minimal losses. Under the current conditions of overall collapse and the lack of coordination and our former ability to plan more than one "move" ahead, the crisis in Chechnya not only threatens to provoke a fatal crisis for the government and constitution of Russia, but even to set up a "geopolitical resonance" that could wipe Russia off the map as an independent historical entity.
When politics is transformed into warfare, it becomes difficult to make decisions: Not even the most beautiful constitution is worth "the tears of a child." But not to take a decision, to shirk one's responsibility, is also a crime.
What should be done next? The first step is to demilitarize the territory of Chechnya by capturing or destroying heavy weaponry and halting the activity of illegal armed formations. In order to avoid unnecessary victims, it should be possible to undertake negotiations with Dudayev and other commanders concerning disarmament. Such negotiations would not be political, but would be like talks with hijackers holding hostages.
At the same time, control must be restored to the federal authorities throughout the republic. The railroad must be opened and made safe. This is vital since without this railroad, the threat of hunger in Dagestan and the North Caucasus republics is very real.
Only as a final step -- and only if absolutely necessary -- can there be worked out an agreement on regulating the authority of the federal authorities with regard to local organs of government.
Rossiiskaya Gazeta, Dec. 27
Vladimir Voinovich
Even before the beginning of what is euphemistically called the Chechen conflict, it was clear even to a first-year student at the Suvorov Military Academy that direct confrontation with a recalcitrant nation could only turn into an all-out war with incalculable losses on both sides. This is clear to anyone who has read Tolstoy or Lermontov and who can imagine the character of these mountain peoples and the conditions under which we will have to fight them, as well as to anyone who remembers Afghanistan.
But all the same, we have gone in. And again the bombs are flying, homes are being destroyed and human bodies are being transformed into bloody bits. And the more obvious the senselessness of the war becomes, the more attempts we see to shut the mouths of journalists and to present official lies as truth. This, even though everyone who is not a complete idiot knows that lies have not helped win a single war throughout human history.
I personally am not automatically against every use of force. Regimes that blatantly violate human rights, that execute people without trials, that foment terrorism, must be brought under the law by a superior force. But such force must be used judiciously against the guilty, and not arbitrarily against everyone.
They are still saying that it is not too late to resolve the conflict politically. It is good to stop madness whenever you can. But the dead cannot be brought back to life and the crippled cannot be given back their arms and legs. And the hatred toward Russia has now reached such a high temperature that it will certainly last at least 100 years -- or until the next generation of generals comes up with another brilliant military operation that will inevitably turn out to be more complicated than they anticipated.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
Georgy Vladimov
Fifteen years ago, in January 1980, we gathered in the Sakharovs' apartment and composed the Helsinki Group's famous "Afghanistan" document, an appeal to the world community to do everything possible to stop the Soviet intervention. It was signed by eight people, later joined by six more. A tiny handful of protest.
But it was enough to destroy the silent "unanimous agreement." But the world community was somewhat different then. "Fraternal assistance" was called aggression and "armed formations," freedom fighters. Today no one is helping the Chechens and we do not even know to whom we are appealing.
U.S. President Bill Clinton considers Chechnya an internal Russian matter, in which the West should not interfere. German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel, although they regret the loss of life and property, have not attempted to speak to Yeltsin bluntly out of concern for the state of Russian/German relations. Bill is repeating Brezhnev's old line about not interfering in internal affairs, and Helmut and Klaus don't want to make Boris mad.
The war in Chechnya, simultaneously a civil war and a national struggle, is also becoming a religious war, a jihad. We must not forget that, in Afghanistan, as soon as Islam began calling for victory over the "infidels," it became impossible to overcome their fighting spirit. Now volunteers from throughout the Caucasus are already rushing to share the fate of the unfortunate Chechnya. If this war is not ended immediately, it may well turn into a war between Islam and Christians. Participation in a third world war in a single century would mean the end for Russia as a state and as a family of nations.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
Sergei Kovalyov
Sergei Kovalyov, the Duma deputy and human rights commissioner, is considered by many to be heir to the legacy of human rights activist Andrei Sakharov. He has been in Grozny through most of the fighting and has made daily appeals to Yeltsin to end the bloodshed. In the excerpt below, he responds to Defense Ministry charges that ethnic Russians are being held hostage in Chechnya.
What does that mean, "hostages?" Some Russians aren't even trying to go anywhere; others would happily leave, but there is nowhere for them to go. And in today's situation, it really is a problem: How can they get out? In this sense, the entire civilian population is being held hostage since it is being subjected to barbaric bombings. Bombs are falling randomly, leaving behind large numbers of innocent civilian victims.
To hear the reports that the government is constantly making through the mass media, a criminal gang has seized power here and is holding the civilian population in fear and subjection. And here come the rescuers! But how should people sent to rescue hostages act? There are special methods for dealing with hostage-takers and terrorists. But now they are striking with full force against the hostages themselves. Are they liberating them? No, they are destroying them. And how are the terrorists dealing with us hostages? They are constantly trying to protect us, to convince us to take shelter, etc. And our liberators are raining bombs on our heads.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
One Pilot's Nightmare
It is difficult for a normal person to understand the state I am in. When blood really starts flowing, you become satanic. Your mind changes, petrifies. No, it is impossible to express in words. The hardest thing is beginning to kill. After that, everything just goes like in a nightmare and you cannot do anything to stop it.
The majority of pilots are expecting an order to end the fighting. No one wants their names in the papers: They are afraid of shame and of Chechen revenge. They combat the psychological stress with vodka. The longer the madness continues, the clearer they see what kind of situation this is. When I hear the desperation of that Duma deputy in Grozny [Kovalyov], I begin to understand the horror of what is going on. I am afraid to read the papers or watch television for fear that I will go mad.
Moskovskiye Novosti, Dec. 28
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