Individuals at Risk

After more than ten years of war and neglect, Chechnya is still in the dark.  The Chechen population is experiencing a deepening humanitarian crisis that has predominantly gone unnoticed by media scrutiny.  According to the United Nations, the vast majority of the population is poor, and 63% have to survive on less than $20 a month.  Homes and infrastructure have been destroyed; access to clean water, electricity or heat is often a problem.  Despite politically charged self-professed stability and pledges of help from the Russian government, Chechen reality has changed very little.  Hundreds of thousands of people fled their homes after the separatist conflicts in 1994 and 1999 and more than 150,000 people still remain displaced in Russia.

The case of the internally displaced people (IDPs), living in temporary accommodation centers, is a particularly difficult one.  Those living in the centers are society's most vulnerable: many are young families with small children, and almost all have disabled members for whom they have to care.  All of them have to cope with substandard living conditions and, at the same time, with the fear of loosing the very little they have (UA 23/08).

Hope seems even more difficult to rebuild that physical reality.  Some studies quote as many as 10% of the Chechen population as living abroad making the exodus of a promising educated class yet another obstacle in the way of sustainable socio-economic development.  As an immigrant from a former communist country myself, I can also point out to the cultural consequences of displacement (internal and external).  Small countries tend to foster nuclear communities, with well defined customs and social structures.  Compromising the existence and natural rhythm of such communities has a detrimental impact on the society overall, with reactions ranging from severe alienation to the loss of cultural landmarks.

Chechnya's sense of itself has been consistently shaken over the last ten years.  Its population has paid a significant human and cultural price for their resistance to assimilation and political peace has yet to bring peace of mind.

Help bring awareness to the forgotten realities of Chechnya by becoming involved.  Right now, 147 families of internally displaced people living in a temporary accommodation center in the Chechen capital, Grozny, are at risk of being forcibly evicted and made homeless at a time when the temperature often falls below freezing levels. You can help!  Click HERE to read more about the current humanitarian crisis and take action.

Hope is what we choose to believe in...

In Solidarity,

Elena Marrs

Beginnings are always challenging.  My permanent move from Romania to the US has drastically altered my sense of belonging and challenged the comfort of a pre-established cultural identity. In my case, however, a fortunate consequence of this national/cultural vacuum has been the possibility to rise above territorial loyalties and embrace a new (voluntary) definition of citizenship- a global one. It was the first inspired step on the path that naturally led me to AIUSA and, consequently, to my internship with the Urgent Action Network...

I think it might be useful to elaborate a bit (more) on the concept of global citizenship since so many of us fall under its umbrella through our concerns and actions/activism. What is global citizenship? Some theoreticians see the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) as the historic foundation of global citizenship, since this particular step emphasized the limitations of national citizenship and presented the alternative of a more inclusive and compassionate version: a global one. I guess a contemporary definition would emerge from our own involvement with the Urgent Action Network - in a very general sense, global citizenship is grassroots activism (defying geography and becoming involved in the concerns of an increasingly interconnected world).  We open the doors of personal engagement and speak forcefully as human rights advocates.  We erase national borders by realizing that, in a global world, individual abuses have repercussions on all of us. They affect our definition of humanity- the basic acknowledgement of the fact that each individual is a human being whose dignity matters. We speak truth to others...and to ourselves.

How does one assume the role of a global citizen?  The answer is both strikingly simple (being aware) and elusively challenging (overcoming mental apathy). The decision to be informed and the act of proactively getting the information you find relevant to your concerns are, I believe, the pre-conditions of global citizenship.  The decline of traditional mass media (e.g. newspapers, private TV stations) - often seen as an intensively commercialized tool, to be consumed rather than deliberated- has raised the need for an alternative avenue for identifying truth.  The Internet has elegantly and efficiently answered the call. As global citizens, we tend to be part of an apolitical community, built on immediate and personalized informational exchange.  Physical presence is no longer a prerequisite for involvement; everybody is simultaneously present and absent in the electronic discussion forum. Our synchronized voices can collectively define change and influence the decision-making process.

And, in the light of the recent commemoration of one of the most visionary "global citizens", Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I leave you with one of his perpetually inspiring quotes:

"The saving of our world will come not through the complacent adjustment of the conforming majority, but though the creative maladjustment of a nonconforming minority".

In Solidarity,

Elena Marrs

Click here to find out more about Amnesty International's Urgent Action Network and get involved!