16 April 2003
DAILY REVIEW FROM TATARSTAN
Russian Agriculture Minister Visits Kazan
Aleksei Gordeev arrived in Kazan on 15 April for the signing a five-year agreement between the federal and republican governments to develop the Tatar agricultural industry, RFE/RL's Kazan bureau reported on 16 April. Speaking in Kazan airport, Gordeev said that Tatarstan possessed one of the leading agricultural industries among Russia's regions and that Moscow "had shared many of its state programs for agriculture support."
Tatar President Mintimer Shaimiev told the same briefing that some 1 million people in Tatarstan live in rural areas and their lifestyle was a significant indicator of Tatarstan's welfare.
Human Rights Commissioner Issues Annual Report
Tatar Human Rights Commissioner Reshit Wegyzov presented the annual report on the human rights situation in the republic on 15 April, RFE/RL's Kazan bureau reported the same day. The report, which is available at http://www.tatar.ru/?DNSID=b29e331ae1dded5561fde4ddb383e472&node_id=2332, assesses the implementation of international and domestic legal norms in the sphere of individual's rights and analyzes the appeals of Tatarstan's residents made to Wegyzov in 2002.
Tatarstan To Open Representation In Sudan
Meeting on 15 April in Kazan, President Shaimiev and Sudanese Ambassador to Russia Ibrahim al-Bashir Osman al-Kabbashi agreed to establish a Tatar trade representation office in Sudan's capital Khartoum before the fall of this year to boost bilateral cooperation , RFE/RL's Kazan bureau reported the same day (see "RFE/RL Tatar-Bashkir Report," 15 April 2003).
Compiled by Iskender Nurmi
DAILY REVIEW FROM BASHKORTOSTAN
Bashkir Police Detachment Returns From Chechnya...
A detachment of 150 Bashkir policemen returned on 13 April to the republic from Chechnya, where it served for six months, aromi.ru reported on 15 April, citing the Electronic News Agency. The unit was replaced by another that arrived on 13 April in Chechnya's Urus-Martan Raion accompanied by Bashkir Interior Minister Rafael Divaev. The same day, one Bashkir policeman was slightly injured by a high-explosive shell, the news agency reported, adding that he will continue his service.
...As Soldier From Bashkortostan Killed In Explosion In Urus-Martan
"Kommersant" reported on 14 April that two soldiers, called up from Bashkortostan and Irkutsk Oblast, died when a military commandant's office car exploded in Urus-Martan Raion.
Injections Kill One, Put Several In Intensive Care In Sibai Hospital
A 75-year-old patient died and another five, aged from 47 to 52, were placed in intensive care as a result of intravenous injections in the Sibai Central Hospital on 15 April, RosBalt reported the same day, citing the Bashkir Emergency Situations Ministry. A commission from the Bashkir Health Ministry arrived in Sibai to investigate in the case. The Sibai Prosecutors' Office said investigators are considering the possibility of injection with fake or old solution or a mistake by hospital personnel. Sibai Prosecutor Khenif Qarachurin told "Izvestiya" on 16 April that an autopsy of the deceased patient revealed no indications that he was poisoned.
Unified Russia, BeeLine Hold Charity Action Among Army Servicemen In Bashkortostan
Unified Russia in Bashkortostan, the Bashkir Democratic Youth Union, and the Ufa branch of the VympelKom-Region cellular communications company held a charity action called "Call Home from BeeLine," during which servicemen from Bashkortostan's two military units made free calls to their parents on mobile phones, Bashinform reported on 15 April. A total of 800 servicemen took part, the news agency reported.
Compiled by Gulnara Khasanova