Russian Federation - DHA-15: 1 October - 30 November 1996

UNITED NATIONS INTER-AGENCY HUMANITARIAN PROGRAMME FOR
 PERSONS DISPLACED AS A RESULT OF THE EMERGENCY SITUATION IN
CHECHNYA, RUSSIAN FEDERATION

SITUATION REPORT OF THE DHA COORDINATOR
BASED ON FIELD REPORTS AND COVERING THE PERIOD
1 October - 30 November 1996



I. GENERAL
Political
On 3 October 1996 Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin and
Chechen insurgent leader Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev signed an
agreement which set up a joint Federal-Chechen commission
to oversee the postwar reconstruction, the withdrawal of
federal troops and the exchange of prisoners. The joint
commission is to be based in Grozny and, it was announced,
would start its work by making pension, salary and
compensation payments to people in Chechnya, it would then
attempt to rebuild housing and heating systems. The
commission was given responsibility for combating crime,
terrorism and -racial- or religious hatred. On 17 October
Valentin Stepanovich Vlasov was appointed to head the
federal delegation to the joint commission. Mr. Vlasov, for
the federal side, and Mr. Hussein Bibulatov, for the
Chechen side, were appointed co-chairmen of the joint
commission.

There are some indications that the peace process may
continue to take the form of bilateral agreements, as the
Chechen side takes the position that federal law is not
automatically applicable in Chechnya.

Subsequently, insurgent chief of staff Aslan Maskhadov was
appointed prime minister of Chechnyas coalition government,
with additional responsibility for defense minister. It was
announced that local and presidential elections would be
held in Chechnya on 27 January 1997.

Alexander Lebd was removed by President Yeltsin from his
post as Secretary of the Russian Federation Security
Council and special envoy to Chechnya and replaced by Ivan
Rybkin on 20 October.

A Chechen Congress, attended by 500 delegates and 100
guests, was held in Urus Martan on 27 October. The Congress
endorsed the decision of the Chechen defense council to
hold parliamentary and presidential elections on 27 January
1997. Speakers at the Congress also expressed concern about
criminality and urged respect for the Russian-speaking
population of Chechnya.

A delegation from Chechnya visited Khasavyurt, in
Daghestan, at the end of October in order to encourage IDPs
to return to Chechnya and to prepare, in cooperation with
the local authorities, lists of IDPs whom they considered
ready to return.

On 16 November Doku Zavgayev, the President of the still-
existing pro-Moscow government of Chechnya, signed a decree
dismissing his prime minister and cabinet.

On 23 November President Boris Yeltsin issued a decree
withdrawing from Chechnya the last two brigades of federal
forces (20,000 men), which had been deployed at two
airports near Grozny. Later, Prime Minister Viktor
Chernomyrdin and his Chechen counterpart Aslan Maskhadov
signed an economic and political conciliation agreement,
which was intended to regulate the situation until a new
government and president is elected in January. The
agreement provides for free movement of goods and people
(with customs regulations to be worked out) and reopening
of the air, railway and road links.
In other development a nine-storey building in Kaspiisk
(Daghestan) which served as a residence for federal border
guards and their families was destroyed on 18 November by
an explosion which killed 50 persons. It was speculated
that the explosion might have been an act of retaliation by
smugglers on the Daghestan - Azerbaijan border.

Significant Population Movements
The inter-agency mid-term review mission mentioned below
established that, as of mid-October 1996, according to
estimates by UNHCR and WFP, there were in Ingushetia, North
Ossetia and Daghestan some 75,000 IDPs from Chechnya, the
majority of whom could be considered for the returnee
programme which is also described below. In Stavropol
Territory and Kabardino-Balkaria there were a further 75,
000 IDPs from Chechnya who were not expected to return.
There was also an unknown number of IDPs inside Chechnya.

In addition, in Ingushetia there were some 28,000 IDPs from
the Prigorodny district of North Ossetia, while in North
Ossetia there were some 40,000 registered and unregistered
refugees from Georgia, mainly from South Ossetia. A house
to-house re-registration of all displaced persons in
Ingushetia, conducted by the Ingushetia Migration Service
in collaboration with UNHCR, is now under way.

Delivery Of Humanitarian Assistance
In Ingushetia, North Ossetia and Daghestan, UNHCR continued
the implementation of shelter (winterisation) and water and
sanitation projects, while WFP continued the distribution
of food to IDPs from Chechnya, to some IDPs from the
Prigorodny district of North Ossetia, and, in North
Ossetia, to the most vulnerable of the refugees from
Georgia.

In the border areas of Chechnya, UNHCR commenced the
provision of assistance to returnees as foreseen in the
United Nations consolidated inter-agency appeal for 1996.
In the area facing Daghestan, two contracts for small-scale
rehabilitation work were signed with implementing partners,
while in the area facing Daghestan building materials were
delivered.

Requests For Humanitarian Assistance
On 26 November 1996 the First Deputy Minister of Foreign
Affairs of the Russian Federation, Mr. Boris N. Pastukhov,
addressed to the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian
Affairs, Mr. Yasushi Akashi, a letter in which he warmly
expressed his appreciation for United Nations humanitarian
assistance in the past and requested a United Nations
programme in 1997 that would cover shelter, food, domestic
items and health services both in the Republic of Chechnya
and in the neighboring republics.

II.  DHA ACTIVITIES
From 22 to 28 October an inter-agency mid-term review
mission, comprising headquarters representative of UNHCR,
WFP, WHO, UNICEF and IOM, under the leadership of DHA,
visited the North Caucasus in order to review the
humanitarian programme for persons displaced as a result of
the emergency situation in Chechnya and to make
recommendations for future action.

The mission held discussions with representatives of the
governments of the three republics, with field staff of
UNHCR, WFP and WHO, with ICRC and with NGOs and visited
projects in each of the three republics. The mission
received a briefing on the situation inside Chechnya from
UNHCR staff who are engaged in providing limited assistance
to border villages in accordance with the 1996 appeal, in
order to lay the foundation for a future return movement of
displaced persons.

The mission felt that it was time to re-orient the
humanitarian programme towards the encouragement of a
return movement and that a regional approach was desirable.
The mission recommended:

(a) a returnee programme for Chechnya, consisting (i)
relief and small-scale rehabilitation activities in secure
areas of Chechnya which would target schools, health
clinics and water and sanitation systems, (ii) provision of
returnee packages containing domestic items, plastic
sheeting and a quantity of food adequate for an
installation period, and (iii) projects for the control of
communicable diseases, mental health and health of women
and children. All these activities would be carried out
from UN field offices in Ingushetia and Daghestan,

(b) an integration programme involving provision of
food, building materials and non-food items to people
identified by the local authorities in Ingushetia, North
Ossetia, Daghestan and Stavropol Territory as persons who
will not return to their places of origin. The integration
programme would be accompanied by health activities on a
regional basis.