More than 300 natives of Chechnya, who are Russian citizens, have amassed near the Brest customs post. "Polish border guards stopped the admission of ethnic Chechens on October 26 in light of the hostage crisis in Moscow," the press centre of the Belarusian Border Committee said on Monday. "The presence of a large number of Chechens in the border zone complicates the crime situation at checkpoints and in Brest," deputy head of the Belarusian interior ministry's passport and visa department Valery Kozlovsky said. This category of people may settle in Belarus or try to cross the state border illegally, he said. "Despite the right of Russian citizens, which the Chechens are, to reside on Belarusian territory permanently, the local authorities will prevent the settling of a large Chechen group in Brest for fear that it may endanger law and order," Kozlovsky said.
They could be perfectly nice people — but Maskhadov and his minions have given them a reputation as crooks, terrorists and nuts. Who wants to take the chance? |