Got a minute?
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Guess which city was deemed the "most destroyed city" by Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders in 1994? (answer: Grozny, Chechnya)
Guess which country fell off the Western radar, but is about to come crashing back on?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>drumroll>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>!
I made a youtube video about what has happened, and what continues to happen, in Chechnya. I would never dismiss the struggles in other parts of the world (Gaza, Tibet, Africa) but it seems that so many people (even liberals) have just completely, utterly forgotten about this small country that is being crushed by Russia (via a puppet "president"). While everyone was preoccupied with Iraq (and now Afghanistan and Pakistan) thousands and thousands of jihadists (mostly Arab) starting pouring into Chechnya in the mid 90's and marshaling the rebels (initially fueled by nationalism) into a strict-Islamic (Wahhabi) guerrilla force. Chechnya, which was always Islam "lite" (Chechen's traditionally subscribed to "Sufism," a meditative, mystic form of Islam) started to "turn the corner" so to speak. The democratic Chechnyan government that was attempting to break from Russia appealed to the U.N. the EU, the United States and parts of the moderate Arab world only to find the brick wall of post-cold war diplomacy staring them in the face. A popular movement based on nationalism and democracy was crushed and humiliated and what remained headed for the hills (literally) and began integrating themselves into the small but established underground Jihadi movement. Russia has now "installed" a President in Chechnya who openly says he likes to fight dogs, watch Mike Tyson fights (Mike has visited him in Chechnya) and read the Qur'an (figure that one out.). Doctors Without Borders, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Care International, Islamic American Relief Agency, etc. have accused him of working in concert with the Kremlin to assassinate opponents and enforce bizarre "terror campaigns" aimed solely at generating short periods of chaos and social stress via mass arrests and the orchestrated disappearances of ordinary people. All of this is done to intimidate what has always been a fiercely independent population. The New York Times, Al Jazzeera and the BBC has reported consistently on his suspected use of "torture facilities." He also closed all state-funded orphanages (stating, "The numbers are inflated" and that "everyone in Chechnya has family."); essentially evicting almost 30,000 children under the age of eighteen (you don't have to be a foreign policy expert to guess who is going to shelter them and give them bread and water and ideological training). Did I mention Chechnya's president hangs with Mike Tyson?
Over the next 24 months, when you hear about the growing violence in Chechnya and some "hard ball" pundit or "expert" begins babbling about Al Qaeda's "new front," and how we need to stamp it out (or better yet how we need to get the Russians to deal more severely with rogue states) you'll already know the real story; with all of its depressingly sad, too-little-to- late details.
If you have the time, please take a look at the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0fSkdx2xbA&feature=channel_page
It's about 7 minutes long and I tried to sort of encapsulate the history of Chechnya, and how conflict has permeated that country's existence.
Comments and suggestion (pro or counter) are welcomed.
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