Protocol of the Meeting of the Working Groups on the Question of a Settlement of the Armed Conflict on the Territory of the Chechen Republic

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Country/entity: Russia
Chechnya
Region: Europe and Eurasia
Agreement name: Protocol of the Meeting of the Working Groups on the Question of a Settlement of the Armed Conflict on the Territory of the Chechen Republic
Date: 28 May 1996
Agreement status: Multiparty signed/agreed
Interim arrangement: Yes
Agreement/conflict level: Intrastate/intrastate conflict
Chechnya Conflicts (1991 - 2009)
The First Chechen War (1995 - 1997)
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, relations between the Federal Russian government with the over 100 ethnic groups deteriorated as demands for autonomy became a major political issue. In March 1992, a federation treaty was drafted and by 1994 the treaty was signed between 87 of the 88 federal jurisdictions and central government, with Chechnya being the exception. The conflict erupted in 1991 following the death of the head of the Communist Party in Grozny when a faction of the USSR’s dissolved military stormed Party Headquarters. Russian forces failed to re-take Grozny and in 1993 the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria announced its independence. Violence and discrimination preceded economic stagnation as non-Chechnens fled the region, and eventually an undeclared civil war broke out as the Chechen opposition attempted a counter-coup against the Chechen ruler Dzhokhar Dudayev. Following the dissolution of the Chechen Parliament in June 1993, a state of emergency was declared, and in December that year an other coup was attempted by the opposition. Issues of sovereignty spurred an assault by Russian troops in December 1994, marking the start of the first Chechen War wherein Russian troops faced four years of insurgency until a ceasefire was unilaterally declared in 1996. A peace treaty was signed in 1997 and Russian forces withdrew.

The Second Chechen War (1999 - 2004)
The inter-war period was marked by economic desolation, corruption and crime. Political polarization was rife, and religious extremism flourished. In August 1999, the Islamic International Brigade led by Shamil Basayev invaded the Russian Republic of Dagestan seeking to found an Islamic State, thereby sparking the Second Chechen War. In response, the Russian Federation began a bombing campaign against the Chechen government and eventually re-took Grozny. An insurgency began following the fall of the Chechen government and separatist attacks spurred an increasingly harsh response from the Kremlin. By 2006, the main separatist leaders had been killed, and the republic has been run by the pro-Russian government led by Ramzan Kadyrov since 2007.
Stage: Implementation/renegotiation
Conflict nature: Government/territory
Peace process: Chechnya peace process
Parties: Russian Federation, signed for by V. Mikhailov;
Chechen Republic, [no signature]
Third parties: In the presence of the OSCE Representative T. Guldimann
Description: Parties exchanged proposals on a ceasefire and the composition of working commissions for negotiations and time-frames for the following meeting, and agreed objectives for liberating all persons being retained by force.

Agreement document: RU_960528_Protocol of the Meeting on Settlement of a Chechen Republic.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Groups

Children/youth: No specific mention.
Disabled persons: No specific mention.
Elderly/age: No specific mention.
Migrant workers: No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group: No specific mention.
Religious groups: No specific mention.
Indigenous people: No specific mention.
Other groups: No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons: No specific mention.
Social class: No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender: No specific mention.
Men and boys: No specific mention.
LGBTI: No specific mention.
Family: No specific mention.

State definition

Nature of state (general): No specific mention.
State configuration: No specific mention.
Self determination: No specific mention.
Referendum: No specific mention.
State symbols: No specific mention.
Independence/secession: No specific mention.
Accession/unification: No specific mention.
Border delimitation: No specific mention.
Cross-border provision: No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed): No specific mention.
Elections: No specific mention.
Electoral commission: No specific mention.
Political parties reform: No specific mention.
Civil society: No specific mention.
Traditional/religious leaders: No specific mention.
Public administration: No specific mention.
Constitution: No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing: No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing: No specific mention.
Economic power sharing: No specific mention.
Military power sharing: No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL general: No specific mention.
Bill of rights/similar: No specific mention.
Treaty incorporation: No specific mention.
Civil and political rights: No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights: No specific mention.

Rights related issues

Citizenship: No specific mention.
Democracy: No specific mention.
Detention procedures: Page 1, 2. On the questions of liberating all persons being retained by force:
... d) beginning on 1 June 1996:
- to cease the detention of civilians with the violation of the procedural norms established by law;
Media and communication: No specific mention.
Mobility/access: No specific mention.
Protection measures: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Rights institutions

NHRI: No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions: No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law: No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions: No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts: No specific mention.
Prisons and detention: No specific mention.
Traditional Laws: No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction: No specific mention.
National economic plan: No specific mention.
Natural resources: No specific mention.
International funds: No specific mention.
Business: No specific mention.
Taxation: No specific mention.
Banks: No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights: No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights: No specific mention.
Cultural heritage: No specific mention.
Environment: No specific mention.
Water or riparian rights or access: No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees: No specific mention.
Ceasefire: Security sector→Ceasefire→Ceasefire provision
Page 1, On the basis of the Agreement on a Cease-fire, the Cessation of Military Activities, and on Measures for a Settlement of the Armed Conflict on the Territory of the Chechen Republic, signed by V.S. Chernomyrdin and Z. Yandarbiev on 27 May 1996 in Moscow, the Parties have come to the following agreement:
1. On the question of a cease-fire and cessation of military activities: The working groups exchanged proposals on measures for a cease-fire and an end to military activities.
Police: No specific mention.
Armed forces: No specific mention.
DDR: No specific mention.
Intelligence services: No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces: No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces: No specific mention.
Corruption: No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime: No specific mention.
Drugs: No specific mention.
Terrorism: No specific mention.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general: No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon: No specific mention.
Courts: No specific mention.
Mechanism: No specific mention.
Prisoner release: Page 1, 2. On the questions of liberating all persons being retained by force:
a) to effect a mutual exchange of lists of persons being retained by force;
... c) to effect within the time-frames agreed upon (within the course of two weeks) the exchange of all persons being retained by force. (Under the term of persons being retained by force is understood participants in the armed conflict who have been arrested, hostages, and also other civilian persons who have been detained, including those arrested at road-blocks, without the presentation of charges of accusation, or those to whom up to the date of 27 May 1996 no charges of accusation had been presented within the time periods established by law.)

... d) beginning on 1 June 1996:
- to cease the detention of civilians with the violation of the procedural norms established by law;
- to liquidate filtrational points simultaneously with the resolution of questions on the liberation of persons being retained by force.
Vetting: No specific mention.
Victims: No specific mention.
Missing persons: Page 1, 2. On the questions of liberating all persons being retained by force:
...
b) to effect a mutual exchange of lists of missing persons;
Reparations: No specific mention.
Reconciliation: No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory: No specific mention.
Other international signatory: In the presence of the OSCE Representative T. Guldimann
Referendum for agreement: No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar: No specific mention.
Enforcement mechanism: 1. parties working groups exchanged proposals on measures for a ceasefire and an end to military activities. 3. parties exchnage proposal on the composition of working commissions for beogitations and on the time-frames for the following meeting.
Related cases: No specific mention.
Source: INCORE, http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/services/cds/agreements/pdf/rus4.pdf.

Protocol of the Meeting of the Working Groups on the Question of a Settlement of the Armed Conflict on the Territory of the Chechen Republic

Moscow, 28 May 1996

On the basis of the Agreement on a Cease-fire, the Cessation of Military Activities, and on Measures for a Settlement of the Armed Conflict on the Territory of the Chechen Republic, signed by V.S. Chernomyrdin and Z. Yandarbiev on 27 May 1996 in Moscow, the Parties have come to the following agreement:

1. On the question of a cease-fire and cessation of military activities:

The working groups exchanged proposals on measures for a cease-fire and an end to military activities.

2. On the questions of liberating all persons being retained by force:

a) to effect a mutual exchange of lists of persons being retained by force;

b) to effect a mutual exchange of lists of missing persons;

c) to effect within the time-frames agreed upon (within the course of two weeks) the exchange of all persons being retained by force. (

Under the term of persons being retained by force is understood participants in the armed conflict who have been arrested, hostages, and also other civilian persons who have been detained, including those arrested at road-blocks, without the presentation of charges of accusation, or those to whom up to the date of 27 May 1996 no charges of accusation had been presented within the time periods established by law.)

d) beginning on 1 June 1996:

- to cease the detention of civilians with the violation of the procedural norms established by law;

- to liquidate filtrational points simultaneously with the resolution of questions on the liberation of persons being retained by force.

3. The Parties exchange proposals on the composition of working commissions for negotiations and on the time-frames for the following meeting.

V. Mikhailov

In the presence of the OSCE Representative T. Guldimann