The Fate of the Chechen Refugees Is Still Vague

The Human Rights Centre, with the support of international organizations, prepared a report on the Chechen and Kist refugees residing in Georgia. The document, presented on December 19, overviews the situation of the Chechen refugees in Georgia and covers the period of 1999-2006. The report focuses on whether the Georgian Government is meeting international standards codified in human rights law with regards to the refugees, as well as highlights examples of abuse of Chechen refugees in Georgia. The report also gives recommendations to the specific bodies of Georgian government.

According to the report, 8,000 refugees fled to Georgia from the Russian Federation in 1999.  8% of Chechen refugees prefers to integrate in Georgia, 73% of them prefers to be located to a third country. Although, certain number of the refugees has already relocated to a third country, the process has already ceased. As for their repatriation to the Russian Federation, international organizations consider it to be unsafe for them.

What are the future prospects for Chechen Refugees? There is no answer to this question. There are only three possibilities: repatriation, resettlement to a third country or integration in Georgia and naturalization.

Their residing to Georgia had resulted from the resumption of the Chechen-Russian Conflict. Of these refugees, Chechens and Kist make up majority. Most of them settled in Pankisi Gorge, the remainder took up residence in Tbilisi.  The refugees chose to settle in Pankisi Gorge because there were ethnic Kists already residing there. In addition, the refugees could live only in sites which were approved by the Georgian Ministry of Refugees and Accommodation.

To find out the refugees' attitude about their residence in Georgia, United Nation's Association of Georgia conducted a random survey of refugees in Pankisi Gorge. The survey discovered that 36% of the Kists and 8% of Chechen refugees preferred to remain in Georgia and integrate. In contrast, 73% of Chechen respondents and 51% of the Kists preferred to be relocated in a third country.   Khizri Aldamov, representative of Chechen People in Georgia, thinks that the best alternative for the refugees will be relocation to a third country.  He said in his conversation with the Human Rights Centre that mostly Kists repatriate to Russia and not Chechens. "Fifteen people have repatriated recently and most of them were Kists. One of the problems is that they do not have passports and the Visa Regime has been complicated. Third-country resettlement of the remaining ethnic Chechen refugees is the optimal solution if it can be achieved. Georgia cannot keep the refugees properly. I do not appreciate the idea of their naturalization and final integration in Georgia."

He added that the repatriation is not safe for everybody. Only those, who took part in hostilities, might get in trouble.

Neither Ministry of Refugees and Accommodation can make final conclusions regarding the future prospects of the refugees. Irakli Kokaia, the chief of the Department of Migration, Refugees and Repatriation within the Ministry, said in his conversation with the Human Rights Centre the refugees should make final decision themselves. "These people should decide themselves what they want. There is a category that does not face any danger repatriating to their homeland. However, there are also people who fought in the conflict and now they cannot go back. The only way out for them is either integration or relocation to a third country. The last alternative has been limited by the UN. Only 1-2 families can be resettled. Most of refugees are more likely to stay here and integrate."

According to the report, the United Nation's High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated that the third countries, such as Sweden and Canada, received a lot of refugees until 2005. After that the rate of the relocation has declined. Nearly 300 refugees were relocated to a third country between 2003 and 2005 with the support of the UNHCR. 70% of them were accepted by Sweden and the rest of them relocated in Canada and other countries.

The essential problem for the Chechen refugees is that they want to settle down on one place that seems impossible in Georgia. The refugees say that they live in Georgia in the fear of being exiled to Russia. However, the Convention relating the Status of Refugees, Article 33 states in part that, "No Contracting State shall expel or return (refouler) a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion."

In 2005, report prepared by the Human Rights Center gives the conclusion of the Human Rights Watch regarding the problem. According to its estimation, in the last six-and-a-half years, 3,000 to 5,000 people have disappeared in Chechnya.

The refugees, interviewed by the Human Rights Centre in Pankisi Gorge, felt that they might be held for ransom or murdered if they return to Chechnya.

Regarding the Chechen refugees' situation in Georgia, Human Rights Centre offers recommendations to the Georgian government, the Parliament and the UNHCR. According to Ucha Nanuashvili, the executive director of the centre, if it were a political will of the aforementioned bodies, the recommendations can be easily fulfilled. "Georgian Parliament should clarify its law on refugees. They should insert a prefatory article into the law stating that a person, crossing into Georgia may qualify as a refugee under the Convention. Also, the Parliament should amend its law on refugees and issue a temporary residence permit at the time a potential refugee applies for the refugee status. There are a lot of recommendations.  The report did not aim at only giving the number of the facts of abuses. One principle part recommendation is to harmonize the legislation with the international convention. If there were a political will, most part of the recommendations is quite real."

On December 19, a film on Chechen-Russian conflict, directed by Russian director Masha Novikova, was presented in Tbilisi Cinema House too. 

Eka Gulua