Text of report by Azerbaijani news agency Turan

Baku, 3 May: Assisting Chechen refugees and protecting their rights are the major aim of the newly-established Committee of Chechen Refugees in Azerbaijan, Firudin Abbasov, head of the committee and representative of ex-Chechen President Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev in Azerbaijan and neighbouring countries, told today's news conference.

He said that the committee intended to obtain refugee status for Chechens living in Azerbaijan. Not having this status, Chechens cannot get international humanitarian aid. They have not received any assistance over the past three or four months and are in "a catastrophic situation". Moreover, Abbasov went on to say that Chechens were subject to harassment by the police who demanded bribes. Chechen refugees do not use the Baku metro lest they can come across policemen. Abbasov also suggested that actions by the law- enforcement bodies were being initiated by the Baku government.

In his opinion, certain pro-Russian forces are trying to provoke a conflict between Chechens and Azeris.

Abbasov said that the Chechen representative office in Azerbaijan did not deal with refugees' problem at the proper level, and Ichkeria [Chechen] President Aslan Maskhadov issued a warning to it in this connection.

Abbasov says that at best, the Chechen representative office allocates insignificant sums to return refugees to Chechnya, where many of them are placed in filtration camps. Chechen refugees have nowhere to go, so they are determined to obtain refugee status. At the same time Abbasov recalled that under international conventions, refugees cannot be forcibly returned to places which they have abandoned as their lives were threatened.

Abbasov says that about 7,000-8,000 Chechen refugees live in Azerbaijan.

Source: Turan news agency, Baku, in Russian 1015 gmt 3 May 01
BBC Monitoring Service -United Kingdom; May 3, 2001