A Nation of Terror?
Legitimate and Illegitimate Violence in the National Self-image of Chechens
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Like almost no other ethnic group, the Chechens are dogged by a reputation of supporting violence and terror. In the 1990s, numerous attacks were in fact perpetrated in Russia in the name of the Chechen national movement. Given the radicalisation and Islamist realignment of some groups, some elected or self-appointed Chechen representatives have distanced themselves from terror. The majority of the Chechen elite appears unable or unwilling to distance themselves from radical groups. As a result, the image of Chechnya as a hotbed of terrorism persists.
(Osteuropa 4/2016, pp. 109–123)