Louiza Saitova, a Chechen refugee in the Netherlands, enamors local residents of the Friesland province with her songs in the Chechen rhythm.

Louiza was a music teacher in Chechnya until the Russian military invasion started in 1994. When the war broke out, the Russian army destroyed everything. She went to Moscow for higher education in music and sometime later she returned to Chechnya, but it was too dangerous. Thus she fled from Chechnya to the Netherlands. Currently Louiza lives in a small town named Woudsend. She continues to sing her songs in Chechen, Russian, and Dutch. She gave a series of concerts in which she told about the war in Chechnya, her flight, and her reception in the Netherlands. She has been really successful in these concerts. In 2010, she won the audience award at Liet 2010, the song festival for Frisian speakers.

Louiza has many ambitions in music and she would like to release a CD. However, recording and releasing a proper CD is a costly affair. Therefore Louiza Saitova is still looking for sponsors for her project.

If any organization or individuals would like to help with her project, you may contact Louiza via her e-mail: pompedur@hotmail.com

Louiza Saitova’s interview in Dutch:

A sample video from Louiza Saitova’s concert:

*Text was translated by Waynakh Online and edited by Michael Capobianco