War Crimes and Politics of Terror in Chechnya - Episode 3: Advocacy without access

Episode 3: Advocacy without accessWith hostilities in Chechnya flaring up again in what the Russian Federation terms as “anti-terrorist operations”, MSF leaders decide to take advantage of the ceremony of the reception of Nobel Peace Prize to call on the international community to intervene. But MSF teams are struggling to work in a Chechnya facing all-out war and dangerous security problems. Instead, MSF starts support refugees in the neighbouring republics where they collect first-hands accounts. Inside Chechnya, operations are run through staff members from the Caucasus who are trained, supported, and managed from afar by international teams in the region. MSF is in a difficult situation that raises many questions: Should MSF be speaking out based on refugees’ testimonies if there are no operational activities with international staff permanently on the ground sin Chechnya? When dealing with a regime in denial of the realities of a war, why is it important to use the word ‘war’? Is it up to MSF to call for this qualification? This podcast series is written, produced and mixed by Andrea Rangecroft. Interviews are recorded by Lucy Dearlove. Editorial direction is from Nancy Barrett, Laurence Binet and Rebecca Golden Timsar. The narrator is Nick Owen. Extracts are read by Didi Bellos and Matthew Wade. The voiceovers are by Lucy Dearlove and Mark Fairclough. The music is by Lost Harmonies and Peter Sendberg.  Photo credits: © Sandra AslaksenA special thanks to Dr Alain Devaux. This podcast is adapted from the case study “War Crimes and Politics of Terror in Chechnya, 1994 – 2004”. Over 9 episodes, it explores the challenges and dilemmas MSF faced during the two wars in Chechnya between 1994 and 2004. These wars raised many questions for MSF on when and how the organisation should speak out publicly about the war crimes its staff witness and the chilling effects of the politics of terror on the Chechen people. Through MSF press releases, internal reports, speeches, and news articles of the time as well as eyewitness testimonies from MSF staff, this podcast series examines the challenges MSF faced when access to those in need was repeatedly blocked by the Russian authorities, forcing international staff to operate and train Caucasus teams at a distance. Later on, when staff members were kidnapped, MSF was confronted with a new dilemma - whether to raise a voice or lay low until their colleagues were released?To read the full study and discover other case studies, please go to our website: msf.org/speakingout   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.