By Kenneth F. Hunt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
MOSCOW, Russia – A Russian official has suggested compiling fingerprints of the entire population of the North Caucasus as a measure to prevent and restrain crime in the region.
The North Caucasus an excessively problematic and violent region of the Russian Federation. The North Caucasus is also home to a large Muslim population, and ethnic tension has certainly contributed to the violence.
The Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office, Alexksandr Bastrykin, proposed on March 4 that the Kremlin compile a database of the fingerprints of all North Caucasus residents. DNA samples would also be submitted for inclusion in the database.
Mr. Bastrykin also suggested that Russia re-register all motor vehicles and issue new license plates for North Caucasus residents as part of a solution to “stabilize” the region.
Human rights groups criticized the suggestion, which appears to have some support at the federal level. For example, Lyudmila Alexkseyeva, a Russian human rights advocate, said that the fingerprinting plan is entirely “discriminatory”, calling such a practice “unacceptable in [any] civilized country.”
Tanya Lokshina, a human rights advocate for Human Rights Watch in Moscow, agreed, arguing that the proposed plan violated the European Convention of Human Rights. Ms. Lokshina also predicted that the progam would “antagonize people further in an already volatile region.”
Mr. Bastrykin suggested that the fingerprint and license plate programs would merely be pilots in the North Caucasus, and could later be extended to other parts of Russia where crime is prevalent. He suggested that the programs would not be used in a discriminatory matter, but instead would only be used “to centralize records and investigate crime”.
Chechen Republic spokesman, Alvi Kerimov, agreed with human rights groups and advocates. Mr. Kerimov stressed that if fingerprinting were to be introduced, it should not be used exclusively in the North Caucasus, but instead throughout the Russian Federation.
For more information, please see:
MOSCOW TIMES – Investigators Propose Fingerprinting in Caucasus – 9 March 2010
ITAR-TASS – Investigation Committee suggests total fingerprint/DNA registration in Russia – 5 March 2010
RADIO FREE EUROPE – Russian Official Suggests Fingerprinting Entire North Caucasus – 5 March 2010
REUTERS – Russia proposes fingerprinting for volatile N.Caucasus – 5 March 2010
