Did a Father’s Appeal to Putin have an Impact on Siloviki who Tortured an Ingush Prisoner?

Paul Goble

            Staunton, July 24 – Yesterday, the father of Ingush activist Khasan Katsiyev, issued a public appeal to Vladimir Putin to protect his son from further abuse by his jailors. Today, he reported the abused had ended, whether by Putin’s order or the fear of local police. But Khasan Katsiyev says he will continue legal cases against his torturers (kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/338199/).

            But whatever impact the appeal had in this particular case, it did nothing to stem the tide of repressive actions against other Ingush activists:

·         Lawyers for journalist Rashid Maysigov say that the authorities have charged his client with possession of large amounts of illegal drugs (kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/338213/). He is also being charged with threatening the territorial integrity of Russia because of his acknowledgement under torture that he was behind leaflets calling for the unification of Ingushetia to Georgia, something he has since denied (mbk-news.appspot.com/region/podkinut-separatizm/).

·         Ingush officials are pursuing legal action and using economic pressure on activists who requested approval for a meeting even after the authorities refused to give them that authorization (fortanga.org/2019/07/dazhe-posle-otkaza-soglasovat-miting-vlasti-prodolzhayut-presledovat-initsiatorov/).

·         Ingush activists say no one should accept official claims that the Fortanga portal was closed for publishing something the powers that be deem to be extremist some time ago. In fact, they say, the site was blocked because of its reports about the Ingush opposition (kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/338211/).

There was one piece of good news today regarding Ingushetia. Doctors in Moscow say they have been able to save the left hand of the seven-year-old girl who was beaten, either by her relatives or by the police, in Magas (capost.media/news/society/izbitoy-aishe-iz-ingushetii-vrachi-spasli-levuyu-ruku).