This Week in the Hot Zone: Chechnya

The war zones that you enter as a journalist are considered war zone "hotspots"; where vigilantes and powerful governments collide. The war zones that you enter as a journalist are considered war zone "hotspots"; where vigilantes and powerful governments collide. But there are other war zones evolving that are hidden under the radar by governments that are stripping away democracy and separation of church and state. Chechnya is representative of an embedded growing global problem of unrest and uncertainty among people in every country on earth. The end to the violence in Chechnya is unlikely to happen as its war zone is shielded by Russia's freedom-less press. And when an independent press is suppressed and cannot unmask atrocities against humanity, conflicts and public corruption ... then how can one ever infer that democracy for the people lives? As war rages on in the Middle East, vivid images of such war zones are being broadcast by news agencies and reflected in video and audio feeds, photographs, and in written news stories on a 24/7 news schedule. How often is Chechnya mentioned within that same 24/7 reporting day? How often does a news agency report on Chechnya’s strife? Or does the media focus upon Chechnya only become global news when its children are taken as hostages and used as pawns in an escalating war between faceless factions of territorial war lords and government? Is Russia really a democracy or has it thrust into power a new-age Russian Czar? The United States is yet another country where democracy is no longer transparent. When a government pays alleged independent news agencies and journalists to disseminate its policies then there ceases to exist a constitutional safeguard called a free press. When a democratic government chooses to bring religion into its democracy ... exactly which religion and its icons are to be given priority ... when a government thinks exposing public corruption is not in the best interest of the government then who is the government? What is democracy if it is not based upon freedom from religious fanaticism; one party rule; public corruption; and where an independent press and its journalists are free to investigate government and then make its findings public for the good of the people? What has been going on inside Chechnya is also a prelude to what is going on globally. Chechnya is considered a local Russian problem; not a global problem. Not yet anyway. But, what one has to comprehend is that Chechnya is really setting the world stage for a showdown between government, ordinary citizens and the principles of democracy. Landmines explode every day in Chechnya ... but no one will be reporting on it today.

Chechnya is fighting for freedom, like other colonies like Algeria, Congo, Nigeria etc. Why we can find on Yahoo, lines like: "the streets have largely fallen to the control of bandits and organized crime" ? These are strictly the opinions of Russians opressors. Is Robert Padwick a Russian agent? oc@as.ro

Kevin, I know you can't possibly read all of these entries; but I hope that you catch this one while glancing over. I work for a charity organization in the United States. I hope that during your time in Chechnya you are able to talk to the people and discover how desperate thier lives have become since the Russian Government along with the government of neighboring Ingusheitia (SP?) have forced all humanitarian organizations to leave. A handful of NGO volunteers are smuggling food and medicine in to the people of Chechnya at the risk of thier own lives because they believe in the right of every human on earth to live free. Please expose the truth so that the international bodies (Such as the United Nations) can intervene on behalf of these people who are suffering immensely. Our own operations have had to cease; we were forced out of Chechnya and Ingusheitia and have lost contact with the orphans that we were caring for as well as the families who depended on us for medical care. Our teams were completely ejected from the country at the gunpoint of Russian soldiers operating under orders from the highest level. When humanitarian aid organizations are forcibly removed from an area; does one reall have to question which side is really the demon?

I agree with "delgelu" and with "saifullah_ibn_taha", I crossed this region until Chechnya, its a real fight for independence and freedom. The only west people I saw there, was under personal risk because all NGOs left this area, its shamefull to see that by own eyes and more shamefull for the pseudo West democracy for hidding the truth, forgetting these fantastic girls,boys,men and women who live there under the dictate and tortures of the Russians army with the blank seing of Russian policy... I was little bit happy when I met a coordination of NGOs of Russian, chechnya mother and family who are united in the free speach to denounce the atrocities from Putine and consors..

Thanks be to God!

Democracy RUles!!!!!!!!!!!

Go Jesus Go goggo !

Why won't anyone admit that it is just the Muslims trying to take over another Christian nation, we where on the wrong side in the Serbia mess, now lets stand up and support the Christians that are trying not to let another country fall into the hands of Anti-democratic forces. No, Russia isn't really fully democratic, but they sure as hell are better that an Islamic region.

I guess that most people here will call me a Russian spy so I better admit it upfront. I just want to paint this story from a different perspective. Let's say that Native American tribes in West Virginia were not exterminated by white settlers but incorporated into new state, its culture and political system to the extent that these nomadic people could take government and military posts like the speaker of US Senate and commander of strategic bombers Air Force base. Also, central government invested money and sent people to create writing for these people in their language which they did not have. Also, people from New England followed government orders and were sent to West Virginia to build factories, oil wells etc. Then, due to weakness of central government and the President of US, those people who still had tribal organization decide that if they declare “independence” and earn support from China and Saudi Arabia then their youngsters will be able to hide home from prosecutors and will escape prison or electric chair for their crimes committed in other 49 states. You would probably ask me why they would violate the law. Simple because they do not abide it and because for their parents and relatives it is not a crime to still, take hostages, kill and rape outside their circle of life. Time to time they even do these to other tribes and then they have vendettas for a long time (see Sopranos etc.). Bottom line – West Virginia becomes Somalia and central government loses control completely. Whites enslaved, raped thrown on the streets and young freedom-fighters kill them at will like young Spartans killed zealots. Then new stupid President of US sends ill-prepared troops that receive stop orders from bribed political elite every time then they locate and isolate gang-leaders. Stupid generals could not separate needing civilians from gang family members and practice carpet bombardments. Meanwhile, gang leaders open media war against US and always use to their advantage visits of foreign officials and NGO. They gather crowds of needy natives with sick infant children in hands to tell the stories and ask for something that they can sell to buy more explosives from US military. Yes, military personnel go into self-defense mode after first few months of operation and would rather shoot everything suspicious then risk their lives in roadside bombings. Because they lost their friends who refused to kill “civilians”, were captured by “freedom-fighters” and later found decapitated. Time to time foreigners lose their heads too - because gangs did not see profit from telling them stories about suffering of their people or because foreign companies refused to pay ransoms. Also cattle and hostages from nearby states are taken in thousands. Some children being sent home in pieces while their parent try to collect money for ransoms. And, meanwhile, central government pays pensions, build hospitals and opens university to start again classes in local language. Now replace US with Russia, West Virginia with Chechnya, China with US and leave Saudi Arabia as it is. Go figure…

Jeez, you guys are blind. The West will do anything to bring Russia down, including fueling the dwindling fire.