RUSSIA: Hundreds rally outside Russian Defence Ministry to protest bullying of a young conscript.

Record ID: 214564

  • Title: RUSSIA: Hundreds rally outside Russian Defence Ministry to protest bullying of a young conscript.
  • Date: 29th January 2006
  • Summary: (EU) MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JANUARY 27, 2006) (REUTERS) RUSSIAN NEWSPAPER SHOWING PICTURE OF CONSCRIPT ANDREI SYCHEV, CLOSE UP PICTURE OF ANDREI SYCHEV
  • Embargoed: 13th February 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVA7HJ3PMOFP0MNUMZDY89RWQPBJ
  • Story Text: Some three hundred people rallied outside Russia's Defence Ministry on Saturday (January 28) to vent their anger over the bullying of a young Russian conscript by a drunk officer. Beaten for hours on New Year's eve by his superiors, 19-year-old conscript Andrei Sychev's legs, genitals and parts of his fingers had to be amputated when proper medical help was finally given. Shouting "Ivanov, shame on you" the protesters demanded Russia's Defence Minster Sergei Ivanov's resignation over the incident. Some other shouted anti-Putin slogans. "It is terrible, especially the attitude of our Defence Minister, who I think, should have resigned immediately as it happened in his office. He is the first one to be responsible for this," said Ekatarina Nikolaivena, one of the protesters. Although the protest was not authorised, police did not intervene immediately.

    Andrei Sychev was set upon in the New Year holiday in a Ural mountains tank academy by drunken soldiers who, reports say, held him semi-crouched for several hours and beat him. Delayed -- some say botched -- medical help resulted in the development of gangrene and doctors finally had to amputate Sychev's legs, his genitals and parts of his fingers. Ivanov initially dismissed the event, but as criticism rose from human rights groups and even from the usually docile parliament over one of the worst cases of bullying in the army, Ivanov, changed his tune and send the Commander in Chief of Russia's Ground Forces for investigation. Managing Russia's chaotic armed forces has brought Ivanov many headaches over the years since his appointment. Accidents have included mishaps with submarines and the misfiring of two missiles during high-profile military exercises. Violent bullying in the army remains a huge problem with scores of young men being killed, committing suicide or being injured from such incidents every year. In March 2005, a group of recruits were made to stand outside in winter cold for hours dressed only in light clothing. One died of pneumonia while 18 fellow conscripts had lengthy stays in hospital. The situation is so bad that Russian parents and sons think up ingenious ways of dodging the draft, from simple but expensive bribes to inventing medical complaints, hiring lawyers and even pretending to be mentally ill. Ivanov, a former KGB spy and a close friend of Putin's who was given an additional high post in the government last November, has rarely looked in political danger from similar scandals in the armed forces.
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