Russia sacks general at base where conscript killed

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has sacked a general in charge of a space force base where a young conscript was beaten so badly by drunk officers that he died this week.

Two officers at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Arkhangelsk region of northern Russia beat Sergei Sinkonen with belts and threw him in a dog cage, local authority officials told Reuters.

Sinkonen died in hospital on Monday.

Defence Minister Sergei Serdyukov sacked General Konstantin Chmarov, who was acting head of the base when the incident happened, said Defence Ministry spokesman Vyacheslav Sedov.

"Due to the tragic events on the Plesetsk Cosmodrome which led to the death of soldier Sergei Sinkonen, Defence Minister Sergei Serdyukov has decided to punish officials for negligently carrying out their duties," Sedov said on Wednesday.

State television showed Sinkonen's funeral with weeping relatives laying flowers on his coffin. He was born in 1986.

Endemic bullying in the Russian army became a major political issue last year when doctors amputated the legs and genitals of a conscript who was bullied by fellow soldiers.

That caused deep embarrassment for then Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, who is widely expected to bid to replace President Vladimir Putin in 2008 when he steps down.

Serdyukov replaced Ivanov as defence minister in February when the latter was promoted to first deputy prime minister.

WEDDING PARTY

A local civilian official told Reuters an officer and a warrant officer at the Plesetsk base went on the rampage after heavy drinking at a celebration of another warrant officer's wedding.

They came across three conscripts, one of whom ran away. Sinkonen and another conscript were badly beaten.

"They threw the solder into a cage for the guard dogs after they beat him up and he was only found in the morning. They (the warrant officer and captain) were very drunk," the official said on condition of anonymity.

Prosecutors said they have charged the warrant officer with causing death by assault and abuse of office accompanied with violence. The captain is undergoing a medical examination.

Recruits in Russia's military serve 18 months and face abusive treatment by older soldiers called "dedovshchina," or "rule of the grandfathers."

The space force prides itself on high levels of discipline and is considered an elite branch of the armed forces.

Doctors last year had to amputate the legs and genitals of Andrei Sychev, a conscript who was abused at the Chelyabinsk Tank Academy, causing an outcry. But the opposition Yabloko party said little had changed.

"The military leadership have not learnt the lessons from the Sychev tragedy which shocked the whole country," Yabloko said in a statement. "The problem of dedovshchina is getting worse and there are no signs the situation is getting better."