The Altaigate Scandal is the name given to the events surrounding the 9 January 2009 disappearance of an Mi-171helicopter in the south of the Altai Republic. The helicopter contained several VIP passengers. The helicopter was found as a result of large-scale rescue operations on 11 January 2009. It was discovered on the Sailughemmountain ridge 8 kilometers from the border between Russia and Mongolia. Seven people were killed, 2 severely injured and 2 slightly injured. Among those dead were the Representative of the Russian President to the State Duma Mr. Alexander Kosopkin, the Head of the Altai RepublicGame Management Agency Mr. Kaimin, two pilots, and one locally famous musician. Among the survivors were Deputy Governor of the Altai Republic Mr. Anatoly Bannykh, the second pilot and two other, one of which was heavily injured.
When the first photos were published from the crash site, some conservationists claimed that the Mi-171 helicopter crashed as a result of illegal game hunting straight from the helicopter. This type of hunting is forbidden by lawCriminal Code of Russia Article 258. Conservationists claimed that the game being hunted would have been protected animals listed in the Red Data Book, which is a legally binding, full protection species fact sheet in Russian, as well as the IUCN Red List. There have been calls to the President of Russia and the State Chief Prosecutor to launch an investigation into this alleged case of poaching and corruption, which led to the fatal helicopter crash . So far the prosecutors have investigated only the technical reasons of the helicopter crash despite immediate appeals from Russian conservationists and public. Only on 21 April, the criminal investigation on poaching started as well as . Altaigate Scandal development was reported on by the local Altapress Agency.
Public reaction
Russia and Greenpeace collected over 6000 verified signatures from the Russian public as part of a petition demanding criminal investigation on poaching and corruption. Despite the legal obligation that the criminal investigation on a reported case should be started within three days, there has been no public information or official announcements.
17-24 July 2009 - rapid adoption by the Duma and the President of the New Federal Law on Game-Hunting ; many NGOs and even hunters call this law "barbarian" and the main disagreement is that there will be now a legal provision for VIP officials to have private hunting grounds in the long-term rent which, as expected, will seriously suppress the rights of the local subsistence hunters.
12 June 2009 - MAC published full report on the crash investigation that indeed confirms that shooting from the helicopter at low altitudes was the main reason of the crash.
Opinions on Altaigate
Alexei Vaisman from WWF Russia: Sergey Mironov, speaker of the Federation Council of Russia in his blog: "I still believe that investigation has to consider all the circumstances of this case and make full legal assessment. This case indeed raises many questions..." Source in Russian:
