Jubilation and revelry had marked the beginning of a new year for most of mankind. The skies were aflame with fireworks as people jammed the streets and partied the night away in all of the world's great cities. However, as most of us celebrated the pomp and splendour, there were other places in the world in which the New Year brought little cause for joy.

The besieged Chechen capital of Grozny was one such place. Amidst the smoking ruins, in a city torn asunder by the relentless shelling of artillery, the conditions for a millennium bash weren't so inviting.

The civilians left in Grozny, an estimated 20,000 to 40,000 residents huddle together in the basements of the capital, awaiting an end to the conflict. With little food or fuel left, their chances of evacuation grow dimmer as the Russian troops tighten the noose around the embattled city.

The Russian war machine reckons that it will seize Grozny in a matter of days. Moscow's field commanders have taken stock of their costly mistakes in the previous war of 1994-96, and have been notably cautious in their approach in subjugating the resilient Muslim rebels. According to AFP, the Russians have employed the use of air strikes, heavy artillery bombardment and even Scud missiles and continue to pound targets in the east, southeast and south of the breakaway republic.

After suffering heavy casualties in the previous bout, the Russian generals have taken on psychological war against the Chechens by targeting the civilian population and turning the freedom fighters against their own people.

As with Boris Yeltsin's shock resignation last Friday, the Muslims in Chechnya and across Russia should not console themselves with the promise of a new leader and a better government. Acting President Vladimir Putin will stop at nothing to recapture the Caucasus and other regions within the former Soviet empire.

The Russian authorities apparently have an excuse for their retaliation against the Muslim "terrorists", attributing them to the spate of bombings in Moscow and other urban areas last summer. This is their basis for genocide, and not the fact that the region has strategic and economic potential, due to its large reserves of oil and gas.

And now the Russians say that they have sealed off the capital, after fierce resistance from the Chechen guerrillas. Grozny and the southern mountains are the only major parts of Chechnya still held by the rebels. According to Russian military sources, all that is left are roughly 2,000 rebels within the network of demolished houses and Soviet-era bunkers.

The conclusion of this war will not be unlike the end of other wars in the past. Lives have been lost, property has been destroyed and lands have been ravaged. It is stupefying and absurd that the world can join hands to celebrate the new millennium when there are war atrocities being committed and innocent civilians are being massacred in the name of democracy.

It is disheartening to see that there has not been any significant response to this crisis from the international community. Apart from a few angry quips from United States officials, and that meandering French president, Jacques Chirac, the rest of gang prefer to acquiesce to the tactless Russian policies. And what of puppet organisations such as the United Nations and Nato?

Yeltsin, the man who initiated this war, will walk away unpunished. With no impending lawsuit against his alleged misappropriation of public funds, the former president of Russia will bear no mark for his crimes. And with a new parliament in office as early as March this year, Russian politicians will quickly forget Chechnya and the rest of us will move on.

What is left of the displaced inhabitants of Grozny will add to the ranks of refugees the world over, and before we can seek forgiveness for our sins, new wars will start elsewhere.

The Chechen conflict is but one of many grievous instances of barbarity and senseless carnage that has marred humankind's passage into a new era. In such a violent period of transition, our outlook on the future should be towards the fulfilment of peace, and precious little else. We must forge a future based on tolerance and understanding, on respect and charity.

In East Timor, Palestine, Sri Lanka and many other regions, the hostilities continue. Struggles for independence, religious conflicts and ethnic dissent will still plague us well into the new millennium.

But life goes on. We console ourselves in the fact that our country has been relatively left out of the major apportion of bloodshed experienced by the world in the last thousand years. We tune in to the evening news and watch in mock horror and a false sense of security as others rape and pillage. Have we really come a long way?

Oh, and a Happy New Year to you too.

SUFFIAN ABDUL RAHMAN is a 20-year old mass communications student at Help Institute and an intern in malaysiakini. His hobbies include mountain-climbing and the occasional game of snooker.