This week an important event took place in connection with the Free Russia Forum (FRF), which is held annually in Vilnius. In the spring of this year we wrote about it and about the attempts of the national liberation movements of the Muslim peoples of the Volga region to interact with it. Although the informal representatives of the Tatars and Bashkirs were not able to participate in the forum, it turned out that the representatives of the Ichkerian wing of the Chechens, mainly concentrated in emigration to Europe, managed to break through. At that time they not only managed to speak at the FRF, but also received unanimous support from those present for their proposal to create a separate panel (working group) on the Chechen question at the next FRF.
However, instead of implementing the decision of the participants of the previous FRF and creating a Chechen panel at the next year’s forum, the Chechen delegation was denied participation by the FRF apparatus (organizing committee). The text of this refusal reads: «We have received your application to participate in the 6th Free Russia Forum in Vilnius. As far as we understand, you are a representative of the Republic of Ichkeria, which in your opinion is an independent state. We do not dispute your position and do not insist that Chechnya (the Republic of Ichkeria) is part of the Russian Federation. However, we would like to draw your attention to the fact that the Free Russia Forum is a platform for the Russian opposition and is primarily devoted to Russian issues. The majority of the Forum’s participants are citizens of the Russian Federation representing various Russian regions. In addition to regional representatives, the Forum also includes Russian political emigrants, the vast majority of whom are Russian citizens. The Free Russia Forum is primarily devoted to Russian problems, and its work is aimed at finding ways to overcome the civilizational, political, and economic crisis in which modern Russia finds itself».
In connection with the above, taking into account the limited number of applications that we can approve due to the large number of applications and lack of space, we give priority to applications from Russian citizens representing Russian regions. Therefore, we regret to inform you that we cannot register you for the 6th Free Russia Forum, as the number of applications from Russian activists has already exceeded our limit. Apparatus of the «Free Russia Forum».
On the one hand, it must be admitted that the answer does not contradict formal logic. If the Forum is Russian, and the Ichkerian delegation does not consider itself part of Russia — neither now nor in the future — it is not entirely logical for them to participate. However, this would only be true if the FRF officially recognized Chechnya as an independent state with which relations should be established as a foreign policy, not a domestic policy.
So far, however, nothing of the sort has been done, nor does it seem to be planned. And if that is the case, then for the Russian opposition the Chechen problem remains a domestic one, as the letter from the FRF apparatus indicates, a «civilizational, political and economic crisis in which modern Russia finds itself.
Pretending that the Chechen problem is not one of the key issues for the Russian opposition, which regularly gathers in Vilnius, is at the very least hypocritical. News and scandals related to Ramzan Kadyrov are present on the front pages and in the broadcasts of the liberal media, if not every day, then certainly every week. He himself is considered by the liberal Russian opposition to be an absolutely controversial figure and one of its main irritants.
But if that is the case, it would be logical to seek dialog with those circles of Chechen society that are ready for it and even reach out for it. Such a beginning was made at the last FRF, which was enthusiastically received not only by the Chechen delegation but also by the Russian participants themselves. However, according to the above-mentioned letter, something has changed. And in the leadership of the FRF it was decided that the Chechen issue should not be discussed by the representatives of the Chechen delegation with ordinary Russian participants, with whom they had found common ground this spring.
In order to prevent such a discussion, it was decided to remove the Chechen question from the agenda of the next FRF. Apparently, the right to decide on this matter is reserved for their behind-the-scenes leadership (in the photo). This is what their «Free Russia» looks like — where there is no place for Chechens, and where self-appointed leaders ignore without explanation the decisions of the people they represent.