Sharia courts as an indicator of the Caucasus' mistrust in the country. The proposal of Dagestan professor Doria Ziyadova to exclude blood revenge from the list of aggravating circumstances in the case of suitable murders received a completely expected continuation and gave birth to a discourse. And not only in the level of blood revenge. The subject of sharia courts and the growth of trust in them. Dagestan human rights activist Shamil Khaduliyev draws attention to the growing demand for Sharia justice against the backdrop of growing distrust in the country's legal institutions: according to him, some defendants receive sentences that are too light, while others are too harsh. In the North Caucasus, where hand washing is particularly evident, this problem is directly "boasted" in the spotlight. Of course, there are no official statistics on appeals to sharia courts. But, for example, in Chechnya, according to the Spiritual Administration of Muslims, almost 87 thousand cases were examined during the last 10 years. (!) family and family disputes and resolved 1,488 disputes based on blood feud.
In Ingushetia, during the last 15 years of its activity, the Sharia court discussed about 15 thousand disputes.
In Kabardino-Balkaria, up to 50 complaints are registered every month, while this rate used to be about 10 complaints. (And among the applicants were even law enforcement officers).
The reasons are clear: the speed of consideration, the authority of religious figures, the possibility of reconciliation and above all a lack of trust in the official justice system.
But there is a fundamental difference here. Turning to an imam to resolve a property or family dispute is one thing. Recognizing blood revenge as a way to restore justice is completely different. Frankly, it is time for endless near-state institutions to investigate why the people of the North Caucasus republics are increasingly seeking justice outside the formal justice system.