Two women and the President

Maria Plieva, a blogger and human rights activist, publicized an open letter that has stirred up heated debates in South Ossetia. The recipient of the letter is President Leonid Tibilov, whereas the subject matter of the letter was the fate of civil activist, Fatima Margieva and her children: Margieva has recently served a suspended sentence; her son is in a pre-trial detention facility; her daughter has just been found dead (a suicide is one of the versions of the story). There is a lot of sensation for Plieva’s public letter, which is being reposted on social networks on a mass scale not only in South Ossetia, but also in North Ossetia-Alania. There are already thousands of such reposts.

“…Fatima Margieva is the most courageous woman in Ossetia. Despite the fact that Kokoity’s regime put her in prison, as well as humiliated and threatened her, she continued to struggle for her freedom…After her release, Kokoity’s regime started persecuting her son, continuously imputing him to the murders which could not be proved even by the law-enforcers that had investigated the cases.

Fatima Margieva

Fatima taught history in Tskhinval University for many years. Her confrontations with authorities started in 2009, when she called on the public to boycot the parliamentary elections. Margieva’s key opponent was then-President of South Ossetia, Eduard Kokoity. In 2010, she spent three months in pre-trial detention and later was given a two-year suspended sentence for the illegal procurement and possession of firearms. The case materials also included leaflets, used by the accused to litigate for the legitimacy of the parliamentary election in South Ossetia at that time.

“I have been teaching in the university for nearly twenty years. I was born and brought up in South Ossetia and I cannot turn a blind eye to developments in my homeland. The only thing I wish is that there was more justice in South Ossetia, more attention given to ordinary people’s problems and that public servants were more productive. There is no way to make me give up on this. I had acted this way before Kokoity came to power, and I will continue acting the same way during his successors’ rule, Margieva told journalists in 2009.

Dmitry Kaloev, Fatima Margieva’s son, is now held in a Tskhinval pre-trial detention facility. He has been accused of possession of firearms. Two days ago, Fatima Margieva’s daughter, Elena Kaloeva, 21, was found dead.

Maria Plieva addressed the President as follows: “Leonid Kharitonovich, do you really think that the possession of firearms in the post-war South Ossetia is a criminal offense? Leonid Kharitonovich, everyone in South Ossetia, even those, who will never admit it to themselves that I am writing the truth, realize that Margieva’s son is the victim of the restless Kokoity, the man you personally assist. Your silence cannot be interpreted otherwise…

“The suicide of Elena Kaloeva, whom I always knew as a cheerful and strong girl, will weigh on your conscience, since you and your government are pursuing Kokoity’s policy, leading our society to a slow extinction.

People are leaving dozens of comments on social media, expressing sympathy and support for Fatima Margieva and, at the same time, demanding changes. “How could this have occurred and what really happened? Suicide is the same as murder. It means that someone must have has driven her to that point, doesn’t it? No matter what happened, that person no longer exists…We are the society that devours its own children. “Having overcome the horrors of many ordeals, we are now losing young and clever people in times of peace. “For our tiny country, such a high rate of suicides among the youth testifies to serious problems that are not going to vanish themselves. “Keeping in mind their posts of today, the people in power forget that everything will come to an end tomorrow, and sometimes this end is far from being happy for those who victimize their own citizens! “I am sure the girl was driven to that point and that definitely means murder! So what does it mean? Who will be brought to punishment?

In her letter, Maria Plieva points the blame to the South Ossetian President and, at the same time, suggests a way out: “You and your government are pursuing Kokoity’s policy, leading our society to a slow extinction…Kokoity’s regime has intimidated everyone to such an extent that this fear will be passed on…to our children. Kokoity has turned the majority of our society into humble slaves and only you can stop that.

“Leonid Kharitonovich, believe me, I will be the first person to support you if you start building a real democratic Republic….

Maria Plieva

JAMnews dossier

• Maria Plieva, 32, was born and brought up in South Ossetia. She worked as a journalist in a local independent newspaper, “The 21st Century and consistently criticized the leadership of both South Ossetia and North Ossetia-Alania. In 2011, she left for Germany, where she is currently employed in the IT sphere, allegedly, as it is pointed out in her open letter, “because of continuous threats on the part of Kokoity’s regime, as well as his friends in North Ossetian MoI, made to her and her family.

The opinions expressed in the article convey the author’s terminology and views and do not necessarily reflect the position of the editorial staff.

Published: 27.05.2016