02.06.2005 - Source: International Federation for Human Rights

Report on ethnic minorities, specially focused on cases related to Yezidi Kurds, and the minorities in the regions of Tsalka and Samtskhe-Javakhetia ("Ethnic minorities in Georgia") [#32580],  [ID 5047]

Document(s): Open document

02.06.2005 - Source: International Federation for Human Rights

Negative stereotyping and socio-economic stigmatisation of ethnic Kurds ("Ethnic minorities in Georgia") [#32580],  [ID 5048]

"Generally the attitude of the population is one of suspicion, even outright distrust directed against certain groups who find themselves, or are seen to be, at the bottom of the social ladder, in particular against the city dwelling Kurds28. Ethnic stigmatisation is coupled with socio-economic stigmatisation. The image presented by the Kurds in Georgian society is poor, and they suffer from a shared distrust, linked to their position at the bottom of the social ladder. The homophony between the Georgian terms meaning Kurds and the word meaning a "thief" (kurti) is an illustration of this. It is due to this image that there are so few mixed marriages. The only case of this we encountered during the mission was that of a Yezidi woman married to a Georgian who was, nonetheless, ostracised by her family due to the ethnic group of her husband (this woman had appealed to the Ombudsman). Many of them hold down very lowly jobs: street sweepers, porters, etc. The number with higher education qualifications is lower, and there are few intellectuals. Social improvement however is not altogether impossible: some Kurds occupy important positions and are well integrated socially and economically. The Kurds we spoke to generally stressed the gap between stereotypes and reality: "Georgians see us all as street sweepers, whilst many of us are well educated, and some are doing well in business". The authorities and police are also guilty of treating them with this poor esteem and current stereotyping. The press or official announcements are often a reflection of it. For example, a Georgian daily newspaper, Dilis gazeti, on 17 April 2002, published two photos on its front page, one of three Kurdish street sweepers, and the other of a sculpture illustrating a traditional dance, the samaia, with the ironic comment "How Summer becomes the samaia dancers". Nevertheless, the Georgian speaking press does sometimes open its columns to Yezidi Kurds for their right to reply."

Document(s): Open document

15.10.2004 - Source: Human Rights Centre

Restoration of Kurds' family names due to complicated legal procedures practicall impossible since 2001 ("Discrimination of Kurd-Yezids in Georgia") [#26749],  [ID 5049]

Document(s): Open document

10.2003 - Source: Human Rights Centre

00.10.2003 - HRIDC: Kurdish acitivist arrested and physically assaulted by police ("Monthly Bulletin 10 (56), October 2003") [#17235],  [ID 5050]

"Kakha Kalashov, head of the “Kurdish Cultural Centre,” claims he has been pressured by law enforcement officials. According to Kalashov, he was arrested by police on 11 October in Gldani-Nadzaladevi and physically assaulted for supporting two adolescents who had previ-ously been detained by the police.

Besides heading the “Georgian Cultural Centre,” Kakha Kalashov is the head of the NGO “Free Press,” a human rights defence service. He says that he has been harassed by law enforce-ments for defending innocent people, especially juveniles.

Kalashov decided to appeal to Koba Narchemashvili, the Minister of the Interior, for a remedy to the situation. Kalashov declared: “If the Minister does not take appropriate measures I will have to use extreme ways of protest or apply to a foreign country for shelter.”"

Document(s): Open document

13.02.2003 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

IWPR: Georgia's Kurdish community say they are in danger of losing their culture, language and faith ("Georgia: Kurdish Minority Facing Oblivion") [#10857],  [ID 5051]

""We are all alone," mused Georgy Shamoyev, president of the Georgian Kurdish Rights Group. "All ethnic minorities in Georgia have the backing of their historical homelands, but not us. Even Assyrians, who have no state of their own either, are patronised personally by the Papal Nuncio to Georgia."

Launching his non-governmental organisation, two years ago, Shamoyev wanted it to be a mouthpiece for Georgia's Kurdish community, which had never formed any organisations before, and presently finds itself on the lowest rung of Georgian society.

"Our community is disorganised, politically indifferent and, for the most part, poorly educated," explained Georgian language teacher Lili Safarova, deputy chair of the Yezidi Association of Georgia. "Four schools in Tbilisi teach Kurdish, but none of them has any books for students or teachers.

"The authorities simply ignore us. That is not hard as we don't have a single representative in parliament, the town hall or the city authorities."
[...]
The Yezidi Kurds, who are neither Muslim nor Christian, migrated to the Caucasus en masse at the turn of the 20th century, fleeing from religious persecution in the Ottoman Empire along with Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians.

The Dutch scholar, Martin van Bruinessen, puts the total population of Yezidi Kurds in the world at 150,000. According to his records, most of them live in Iraq, while there may be up to 40,000 in both Georgia and Armenia, which are traditionally tolerant of non-Muslim Kurds.

No accurate statistics exist for the current Kurdish population in Georgia. "During the 2002 population census there was no box for 'Kurdish' on the nationality section of the form," explained Mrad Mrodi, a Yezidi lawyer. "There was a box for 'Turkish', although there are a few dozen Turks in Georgia as against thousands of Kurds. I refused to take part in the census in protest."
[...]
And the Kurds are leaving. A few years ago, there were several villages in Georgia's eastern Kakheti region, populated exclusively by Kurds. Now, most of the villagers have gone.

The largest portion of Georgia's Yezidi Kurds live in Tbilisi's "dormitory districts", where housing is much cheaper than in the centre of town. Most of them do menial jobs. Street cleaners in the city have always tended to be Kurdish women. They stand out from the crowd in their bright-orange vests worn on top of long pleated velvet skirts.

"Kurds have been marginalised in Georgia politically, socially and economically. Unless we overcome this inferiority complex, Georgian Kurds will disappear as an ethnic group," said Georgy Shamoyev."

Document(s): Open document