Religion In the North Caucasus

Vakhabism and the Chechen Conflict

While the focus of this study has been the North Caucasus region, the impact of religion on the region's conflict has been most dramatic in Chechnya. In contemporary Chechnya, as noted above, traditional Islam is challenged by a new phenomenon called vakhabism. Originally, this movement emerged in the 18th century and was named after its founder Al-Vakhab. He claimed that Islam was distorted and called his followers to "purify" it and return to Islam's fundamentals. Nowadays vakhabism is spread across the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia, where it is accepted as an official ideology of the royal family. Vakhabism in Chechnya (as well as Tadjikistan), however, does not relate directly to vakhabism as it is understood by Sunni Muslims in the Middle East countries. Although the main idea is the same-the purification of Islam from both "pagan" and modern influences-Chechen vakhabism has a set of characteristics that distinguish it from religious values and practices in Saudi Arabia.

The Vakhabite movement has deep implications for Chechnya's religious, social and political life. Its call to purify Islam challenges Chechnya's traditional Islam , something which is heavily influenced by the local system of beliefs and norms, as well as an elaborate structure of religious communities and brotherhoods. In fact, Vakhabism attempts to "return" the population to what it views as "original" Islam, rejecting Chechnya's unique historical experience. The key to this transformation is the application of rules, norms and practices accepted among the radicals in the Middle East to the Chechen social and political life. Hence, traditionalists (who constitute the overwhelming majority of the population) associate Vakhabism with foreign influence, which poses a threat to their religious customs and identity. For their part, the Vakhabites view the supporters of traditional Islam as backward sectarians who distort Islam. The conflict between fundamentalists and traditionalists, along with less sharp but nevertheless significant divisions among Sufi sects, since the early 1990s has had a profound impact on Chechen politics, including the ongoing Russian military operation in the region.

During the 1994-1996 military operation, the Russian federal troops were a common enemy for most Sufi brotherhoods and Vakhabites. Both were mobilizing the population against the federal government (most Chechen leaders identified themselves with Sufi brotherhoods to secure the support of their members; for example, President Dudayev declared that he belonged to the Kunta-Hadji brotherhood). Therefore, their differences were temporarily put aside. Moreover, the Vakhabites managed to strengthen their position in Chechnya. Money, armament and fighters provided by their radical counterparts from abroad were crucial to the Chechen resistance against the federal forces and enabled Vakhabites to become an influential group in the republic. The relations between Sufi brotherhoods and Vakhabites deteriorated dramatically after the end of the 1994-1996 campaign. Their religious differences spilled over into politics.

In the political realm, traditionalists and fundamentalists disagreed over how the Chechen state ought to be organized and what its policy towards Russia should look like. Sufi Muslims advocated a secular state that would preserve Chechnya's traditional social structure and its unique Islamic culture. Their position on the future of Russian-Chechen relations was not uniform and ranged from calls for independence to the development of a "special status" within the Russian Federation. There is no evidence that Sufi brotherhoods had any interest in protracting the conflict or extending it beyond Chechnya's borders. Vakhabites were determined to build a "pure" Muslim society which would be organized and regulated according to the Shariat law (as opposed to adat - traditional norms developed in Chechnya before the adoption of Islam). "Just Islamic order" as they believe it had existed in the times of the Arabic khalifat became the goal of Chechnya's religious extremists. Furthermore, they embraced the idea of creating a larger Islamic state in the Northern Caucasus which would include Daghestan, Ingushetia and possibly other Russian regions. Since those regions chose to stay in the Federation and their predominantly Muslim population did not sympathize with fundamentalism, the only means of achieving this objective was aggression against Russia and then gazavat (or jihad) - holy war against non-believers (in Daghestan, since the early 1990s the population rejected the ideas of vakhabism and the leadership declared them "undesirable" in the republic. In June, 2000 all Vakhabite organizations were prohibited in Daghestan by an act of its parliament).

Thus, Vakhabites challenged the official Chechen leadership (President Maskhadov and its supporters) and posed a serious threat to the foundations of the Chechen society. As a result, official Grozny was becoming more and more critical of vakhabism in its statements and declarations. However, Maskhadov took no decisive action, as he feared that would exacerbate the situation in the republic. Confrontation between traditionalists and radicals resulted in violence several times; for instance, as noted above, Vakhabites clashed with Sufi Muslims in May, 1998 in Gudermes and Urus-Martan and then again in Gudermes in July, 1998 (approximately 50 people were killed that day). Fearing that fundamentalists will destabilize the situation in the republic and attempt to rebel against Grozny, Maskhadov declared the state of emergency, dissolved and disarmed the Shariat Guards and Islamic regiment, and ordered to exile the well-known warlord Khattab, a mercenary from Jordan who allegedly cooperated with radicals. On July 23, 1998 there was an attempt in Grozny to assassinate Maskhadov, an attempt probably organized by Vakhabites. Observers from Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Chechnya itself agreed that at that point the republic was on the brink of civil war.

Despite their relatively strong positions, Vakhabites were not able to assert their influence throughout the republic, much less impose their ideology in its entire territory. However, they went ahead with their plans to occupy neighboring Russian regions and invaded Daghestan in August, 1999. Although members of Sufi brotherhoods may have participated in the invasion as well, the idea and its implementation are blamed by the Russian government and the local population primarily on Vakhabites. Subsequent investigations and the fact that the officials Grozny from the very beginning announced that they did not have anything to do with the events in Daghestan and condemned the aggression further convinced Moscow that fundamentalists had started their jihad and the situation in Chechnya was out of control. Vakhabites were perceived as a major threat to peace and stability in the Northern Caucasus and the territorial integrity of the Federation. The invasion of Daghestan and the Vakhabites' plans to wage a holy war against Russia until the creation of a "purely" Islamic state in its southern territories were the top reasons that prompted the federal government to start a military operation in Chechnya immediately after the defeat of those who attacked Daghestan.

As the federal troops advanced into Chechnya, however, they had to fight not only Islamic extremists but also the members of Sufi brotherhoods who, like in 1994-1996, Russian control for various reasons opposed. Unlike fundamentalists, Sufi Muslims do not fight for a religious cause and tend to have more reasonable positions on issues. Moreover, their dissatisfaction with the situation in the republic in the 1996-1999 period encouraged them to cooperate in a number of cases with the Russians. As a result, many of the Sufi communities engaged in negotiations with the federal representatives and avoided armed conflict. Some of them openly supported the military operation and organized volunteer troops to fight against both Sufi and Vakhabite rebels on the Russian side.

In brief, a certain Sufi community may or may not fight the Russians or Vakhabites depending on their traditions, history, kinship ties, religious idiosyncrasies and even geographic position (the population in the mountains is generally perceived as very militant and hostile even to fellow Chechens from the flatland, whereas the northern part of the republic has been loyal to Moscow). On the other hand, Vakhabites are, almost by definition, inclined to resist the Russian military operation and subsequent restoration of peaceful life and order. Therefore, the Russian government, the military and the population at large view Vakhabites or any other radical Islamic movement as the biggest obstacle to the stabilization of the situation in Chechnya. Traditional Sufi groups are Moscow's most valuable partners in the struggle against extremism when they choose to cooperate, and therefore the federal government makes efforts to support traditional Chechen institutions mentioned above - teips, tukhums, virds and tarikats. There is a belief that they will help prevent the spread of extremism and facilitate the return to normal life.

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