Number 1, Spring 1995

CCCRTE

Roswitha Jarman

The former Soviet republics that lie on the northern slopes of the Caucasus mountains and stretch from Adygea to Dagestan are known as the Northern Caucasus. Most people live in the flat lands north of the mountains. Mountain dwellers have, over the past 150 years, been persuaded to move to the lowlands.

Under the Soviet system, records of the Caucasian peoples were distorted and falsified.This has given rise to myth and competing claims to land and rights being made by different ethnic groups, which have caused anger and confusion and led to violence. Also under Soviet rule, Russian was the dominant language. Many children did not learn to speak their native languages. In the 1940s, Stalin deported complete national groups to Central Asia for allegedly collaborating with the Germans. The groups deported were mainly Muslims: the Karachai, Balkari, Ingush, Chechens, and the Buddhist Kumiks.

Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, the republics have been given a certain amount of independence. A Confederation of Peoples of the Caucasus has been independently formed. In 1991, Chechnya, which had formed one republic with Ingushetia since 1934, decided to secede from Russia and become independent. A year later, Ingushetia broke away from Chechnya to remain in the Russian Federation.

Seeds of conflict

There are many potential reasons for conflicts in the region. Here are some:

• When, in 1957, the deported people were returned, many were settled in places which they did not consider their territory. In some instances, the returned people were made to feel like second-class citizens, The IUngush were not given back an important part of thier ancestral lands;
• The deportees were stigmatized as having betrayed the Soviet Union to the Germans.
• There is little accurate information on the history of the peoples. Myths and rumours abound.
• Although some efforts are made to listen to each other and respect cultural differences, the tension between groups indicates that these are inadequate. There is competition for resources, unemployment is threatening. There is rising crime and what is seen as a mysterious and menacing mafia structure;
• The psychological adjustment to a completely new world causes tensions in all areas of life,while there is a race to try and modernize, to learn English, to gain access to the rest of the world, and not to be left behind;
• And there is a lack of knowledge of how to cope with conflict -- other than fighting it out.

In October/November 1992, a violent conflict lasting about 10 days broke out between North Ossetia and Ingushetia, with Russian forces being eventually used as peacekeepers. The result of this conflict was that about 1,000 people were killed, some 60,000 Ingush were deported or became refugees, and all their homes were destroyed. Ossetians suffered much fewer casualties and less destruction of property. No public inquiry as to the cause of the violence has been carried out. The North Ossetians blame the Ingush for allegedly launching the attack. The Ingush maintain that they responded to provocation from Northern Ossetians and that the Russian forces, instead of bringing peace, sided with the Ossetians and drove the Ingush from what they claim to be their rightful territory. The approximately 60,000 refugees in Ingushetia have suffered great hardship for over two years now. Some return of refugees to the disputed territory was interrupted with the outbreak of the war in Chechnya.

Conflict resolution NGOs in the Caucasus

In the autumn of 1990 the Europe desk of Quaker Peace and Service (QPS), was asked to help with exchanges of people from the Northern Caucasus. This took the form of exchange visits to Northern Ireland to help them better understand the nature of internal conflicts. Once I and my husband, Peter Jarman, were establisehed in Moscow, we made regular visits to parts of the North Caucasus. We also co-operated with and brief International Alert workers and the World Council of Churches delegeation to the Transcaucasus.

Local non-governmental organizations, as we know them, do not exist in the region. There are leftovers from Soviet times, such as a women's committee and a group of teachers for peace. There are also individuals who follow their particiular interests. However, pressure groups or groups for alternative action are not really established. The greatest disappointment for me was to find members of one internationally sponsored human rights group in Vlaidkavkaz to be fascist in language and tone. There is a traditional loyalty to support your people right or wrong and fear and shame attached to being in the opposition.

What unites people?

• Pride in being Caucasian mountain people;
• A knowledge of ancient traditions and cultures, costumes and dances, chivalrous attitudes, honouring and respecting women in a male-dominated society;
• Respect for elders and their decisions;
• Honouring guests, being proud of the hospitality given;
• Codes of behaviour;
• Standing on the crossroads of Europe and Asia;
• The Russian language and common heritage of the Soviet Union;
• Having had to defend their land from both the south and north;
• Islam;
• Having natural grace and dignity.

What kind of peacebuilding may be helpful?

On the broadest scale it is important to get the world community involved. It is important that Western politicians speak out and try to communicate their concerns to the Russian government. It is also important that organizations such as the OSCE continue to monitor the human rights situation in the region and press for an end to abuses. It is also good to know that the Russian Patriarch has spoken with the Muslim leader of Chechnya.

Bearing in mind that there are tens of thousands of displaced and homeless people in the region, equal numbers of those who have been traumatized, bereaved or injured, that there is terrible destruction at all levels, that there is poverty and mafia activity, a clash of Muslim and non-Muslim cultures, a Stalinist heritage and backward social service structures, what can ordinary people do to help in peacebuilding?

I would suggest that there are a number of avenues:

• Support individuals and groups engaged in peacebuilding in the region;
• Listen to people and publish the truth as they see it;
• Live alongside people and offer training (English-language, psychological councelling, conflict resolution training, humanitarian help, medical and social assistance;
• Provide seminars to help develop indigenous skills. Focus those seminars on:

How to identify common ground;
How to facilitate meetings;
How to explore reconciliation, peace- and justice-building.
And in considering creative non-violence, there must be many more options.

newsletter  |  ccts