Quietly, tide of opinion turns on Chechen war

But the protest movement is growing and might eventually sway opinion. At Moscow's Andrei Sakharov Museum and Community Center over the past month, a steady stream of visitors passed through an exhibit of photos, bloodied clothes, and other materials devoted to the victims of a decade of "war and terrorism" in Chechnya.

"We wanted to make people think about the question: What are we fighting for?" says Yury Samodourov, the museum's director. "If a war has no clear and discernable purpose, then it's impossible to ever win it. We've had groups of cadets, military people, politicians, and many others come through here. I hope it is having an impact."

Last week one of Russia's bigger grassroots groups, the Committees of Soldiers' Mothers, transformed itself into a political party to more effectively project concerns about military conscription and the Chechnya war to the public arena. "There needs to be a flow of accurate information [about the war in Chechnya]. Questions need to be put to the authorities through the proper channels, and in the correct language. Since we no longer have anyone to do this for us, we've decided to do it ourselves," says Valentina Melnikova, chairperson of the new United Peoples' Party of Soldiers' Mothers.

Drawing sharp criticism from the Kremlin, members of the group plan to meet next week in Brussels with Akhmed Zakayev, a representative of Chechen rebel leader Aslan Maskhadov. The mothers' group wants to talk about ways to end the war in Chechnya, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says the group was simply "justifying those who encourage and carry out terrorist attacks," the Associated Press reported yesterday.

A leader of Yabloko, one of the liberal parties excluded from the State Duma after last December's voting, says he sympathizes with Ms. Melnikova's frustrations over the war. "Our political field has narrowed, there is censorship in the mass media, and the war in Chechnya is a prohibited subject," says Sergei Mitrokhin, Yabloko's deputy chairman.

But last month 2,000 people attended a protest rally on the fifth anniversary of the Chechnya war - a minuscule turnout for a city of 10 million, but a sign, organizers say, the public is beginning to stir.

"There is no developed civil society in Russia, and most people are not ready to openly protest," says Lev Ponomaryov, head of the Moscow Human Rights Movement, a coalition of community groups. "But opinion surveys show the war in Chechnya does worry the population, and they do not believe a military solution there is possible. Society is sending signals to the authorities, even if they prefer, so far, not to notice."

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