17.08.2007 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

New draft law guarantees return of deported people but promises no help with resettlement ("Meskhetian Turks Closer to Return") [ID 20967]

Document(s): Open document

28.06.2007 - Source: EurasiaNet

Georgia on the verge of approving a plan that would permit the repatriation of thousands of Meskhetian Turks; opposition politicians warn that the legislation is vague and could lead to unpleasant surprises for the government ("Parliament Considers Meskhetian Turk Repatriation Plan") [ID 20394]

Document(s): Open document

27.06.2007 - Source: Civil Georgia

Parliament approved a draft law on the repatriation of Meskhetians on its second reading ("Proposal to Repatriate Meskhetians Passed on Second Reading") [ID 20392]

Document(s): Open document

13.02.2007 - Source: Council of Europe - European Commission against Racism and Intolerance

Slow progress regarding the return of Meskhetian Turks; fewer than 1,000 persons have returned to Georgia ("Second report on Georgia: Adopted on 30 June 2006 and made public on 13 February 2007 [CRI(2007)2]") [ID 19180]

"To date, only a few Meskhetian Turks (fewer than 1,000) have returned to Georgia. An intergovernmental committee for the repatriation of Meskhetian populations, headed by the Minister for Conflict Resolution, was set up in November 2004. A bill on “the repatriation of persons deported from Georgia by the Soviet regime in the 1940s“ is currently under consideration, in consultation with Council of Europe experts among others. ECRI is pleased to learn that the government has stated its political will to resolve the issue. However, many commentators consider progress to be too slow and believe that much remains to be done before the members of the deported population who so wish can return under satisfactory conditions."

Document(s): Open document

06.02.2006 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Ad hoc committee agreed on measures to facilitate return of Meskhetians; government campaign should prepare Georgian society opinion for return; currently 100 out of 756 Meskhetian repatriates were granted Georgian citizenship ("Refugees and displaced persons in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia [Doc. 10835]") [#43664],  [ID 5052]

"43. On the question of the return of the Meskhetians, one may usefully refer to Resolution 1428 (2005) recently adopted by the Standing Committee. The resolution is in fact addressed more to the authorities of the Russian Federation than to the Georgian authorities, who have until 2011 to complete the repatriation of those Meskhetians who wish to return. In the course of the visit I was able to ascertain that an ad hoc committee had recently agreed on the measures to be taken to enable this obligation to be fulfilled, and that it was to submit its recommendations to the President in April. The government intends to conduct a campaign to remind Georgian citizens of the contribution made by the Meskhetians to Georgian society and possibly prepare opinion for the return of this forcibly displaced population. The government admits that it does not know the exact number of candidates for repatriation. There are reported to be 756 Meskhetian repatriates in Georgia at present, around 100 of whom have been granted Georgian citizenship. It appears that the most important thing in the eyes of the Meskhetian population is to have the legal possibility of acquiring a citizen status. To complete the picture, it should be noted that neighbouring Azerbaijan has enabled this community, known as “Akhska”, to obtain Azerbaijani nationality and hence to become completely integrated in society."

Document(s): Open document

05.01.2006 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

In March 2005 Commission was set up to address repatriation of Meskhetians; law on repatriation has been prepared in Parliament since February 2005; integration of Meskhetians is successful in several aspects, however they still face discrimination in daily life ("Implementation of Resolution 1415 (2005) on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Georgia [Doc. 10779]") [#41527],  [ID 5053]

"87. In its Resolution 1428 (2005) on the situation of the deported Meskhetian population, the Assembly recalled that today, the Meskhetians live dispersed in several countries: the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey and that the situation of several thousand Meskhetian living at present in the Krasnodar region (Russian Federation) raises major concern. The Meskhetians were forcibly removed in 1944 from their homeland in south-west Georgia, now known as Samtskhe-Javakheti, to other parts of the then Soviet Union.
88. In addition to the requirements addressed to Russia, Resolution 1428 called on the Georgian authorities "to create, without any further delay, the legal, administrative and political conditions necessary for the start of the repatriation process of the Meskhetians who wish to return to their native region", stating that the essential principle should be the free choice of those concerned. [...]
89. In our previous report, we encouraged the authorities in their intention to create a special commission with the mandate to estimate the number of families willing to return, start the process of preparation for the repatriation and to reverse the strong public objection against this process. [...] The Commission was indeed set up in March 2005 by a Presidential decree. […]. Since there are no reliable data on the demographic and social situation of the Meskhetians, it is important to stress the need for the relevant international organisations to get involved in this estimation.

92. Another Georgian commitment in this respect is the adoption of a law on repatriation of persons deported from Georgia in the 1940s by the Soviet regime. The Georgian authorities have made the fulfilment of this commitment conditional on the creation of appropriate conditions in the country for the return of this population. In February 2005 the relevant Parliamentary Committee started working on the law on repatriation. [...]
93. The Union of Georgian Repatriates, whom we met during our November visit, has recently completed a comprehensive database on Meskhetian repatriates in Georgia. The main findings are worth mentioning: as of 1 May 2005, there were 755 Meskhetian repatriates under Georgian jurisdiction, 163 of whom had emigrated. Not all of them had Georgian citizenship: the difficulties were related to bureaucracy in the department of Citizenship in the Ministry of Justice, as well as to obstacles to withdrawing citizenship of the country they came from. The study considers that the integration of the Meskhetians has been successful in several aspects, such as the Georgian language education and the ongoing recovery of their old names. However, the study also reveals that anti-Meskhetian feelings are still an everyday reality, leading to discrimination. There is not enough recognition of the deportation in history schoolbooks and museums."

Document(s): Open document

23.11.2005 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Muslim Meskhetians exiled by Stalin 60 years ago are to be legally entitled to return home ("Cool Welcome for Meskhetians") [#39718],  [ID 5054]

Document(s): Open document

19.04.2005 - Source: Council of Europe - Secretary General

Commission dealing with repatriation of Meskhetian Turks established ("Reports from the Council of Europe Field Offices; March 2005 [SG/Inf(2005) 10]") [#34849],  [ID 5056]

"104. According to a decree by the President of Georgia, a special commission has been set up to work on the issue of repatriation of Meskhetian Turks to Georgia. Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues Goga Khaindrava will chair the commission. The newly established governmental commission held its first session on 28 March and decided to send a mission to those places in the former Soviet republics, mainly Russia, where Meskhetians currently reside. The commission decided to establish a small group, which will travel to the current residences of the displaced Meskhetians in an attempt to identify their exact number. It decided to draw a map of potential places in Georgia where they can be repatriated. The commission will also develop an action plan to be presented to the Georgian President for approval by 15 April. On 22 March Goga Khaindrava held talks with Suleiman Barbakadze, head of Vatan, an international organisation of Meskhetian Turks, who urged the adoption of a law for repatriation. Goga Khaindrava stated that the Meskhetian Turks should return to Georgia on a voluntary basis.
[...]
113. Boris Cileviès, member of the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE) Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population visited the country. He stated on 28 March that problems regarding the IDPs and refugees are very serious in Georgia. The PACE officially welcomed the Georgian Government's decision to establish a special commission dealing with issues relating to the repatriation of Meskhetians."

Document(s): Open document

14.03.2005 - Source: Council of Europe - Secretary General

Repatriation of the Meskhetian population deported in 1940-1944 should be completed by 2011 ("Compliance with commitments and obligations: the situation in Georgia [SG/Inf (2005) 6]") [#31811],  [ID 5057]

"60. A special Council under the President of Georgia to deal with the issue of the Meskhetian population’s return was established in December 2004 and will be chaired by the recently appointed Minister of Justice. Content and methods of co-operation between the special Council and the Council of Europe have still to be discussed. Work on the draft law on repatriation has started (see also doc. GR-EDS(2004)32).

61. Upon the decision of the Ministers’ Deputies of 2 March 2005, which reiterates the terms used in PACE Resolution 1415(2005), the Georgian authorities are asked to create, without any further delay, the legal, administrative and political conditions for the start of the process of the repatriation of the Meshketian population with a view to its completion by 2011."

Document(s): Open document

21.12.2004 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Repatriation and integration of Meskhetian population ("Honouring of obligations and commitments by Georgia [Doc. 10383]") [#28272],  [ID 5059]

"31. (Original deadline: April 2001 for the adoption of the legal framework, April 2002 to begin the process and April 2011 to complete the process). This is clearly one of the most sensitive and difficult issues for the Georgian authorities. In spite of its acceptance of the commitment, the previous government did basically nothing to move ahead in this matter. Moreover, during its rule the Meskhetian issue was a favourite target for some populist politicians, which resulted in the current public reluctance to accept the return of the Meskhetian population. The co-rapporteurs hear and understand the new government’s argument that overcoming the strong public objection to the return will take time, but they also insist that the authorities keep in mind the tragic fate of people who have been so ruthlessly relocated six decades ago and have since been forced to live in extremely precarious conditions.

32. The co-rapporteurs welcome the authorities’ intention to create a special commission with the mandate to estimate the number of families willing to return, start the process of preparation for the repatriation and to reverse the strong public objection against this process. Provided that such a commission will soon begin to work, on the basis of a detailed action plan with concrete objectives and set deadlines, the co-rapporteurs are ready to consider a 2 year extension of the deadline to complete the return process, to 2013. In this context, it should be mentioned that the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population is currently preparing a report on the plight of the deported Meskhetian population (Rapporteur: Ruth-Gaby Vermot-Mangold, Switzerland, SOC)."

Document(s): Open document

19.01.2004 - Source: Caucasian Knot

Akhaltsikhe (Meskhetian) Turks deported in 1944 keep on insisting on their return to the Samtskhe-Javakheti region ("Turks-Meskhetians insist on fulfillment of Georgia's commitments to Council of Europe (Prime News Information Agency )") [#21772],  [ID 5060]

"Akhaltsikhe (Meskhetian) Turks deported in 1944 keep on insisting on their return to the Samtskhe-Javakheti region, which is their native land, and demand that the new Georgian leadership meet commitments on the repatriation of this people undertaken to the Council of Europe more than 4 years ago. "The Turks-Meskhetians' return is an issue of State importance," said Chingiz Neyman-Zade, deputy chair of the Association of Akhaltsikhe (Meskhetian) Turks "Vatan" (Motherland) in Azerbaijan. Until this problem is settled, one can not state that Georgia follows the pass of democracy, he noted.

"The Turks-Meskhetians are tired of explaining that they require no compensation, no restitution of the villages and territories taken from them before, they are not inclined to declare autonomy in Samtskhe-Javakheti, they just want to come back and start normal life at home," said Chingiz Neyman-Zade. According to him, the only thing they need for it is a political decision of the Georgian leadership. Then they would be able to regulate their life themselves with the help of international humanitarian organizations."

Document(s): Open document

25.03.2003 - Source: EurasiaNet

A repatriation for plan Merkhetian Turks is currently facing opposition in Georgia. Divisions within the Meskhetian community itself also are impeding efforts to promote their return ("Meskhetian Turks: still struggling to return to their homeland") [#12024],  [ID 5061]

"Georgia often cites the fact that, with the Abkhazia and South Ossetia questions unresolved, it does not have the resources to handle the Meskhetian return. Officials add that a Meskhetian return could further destabilize Georgia’s territorial integrity. Yunusov is wary of such arguments: “I don’t deny that Georgia is facing many problems … but many of the reasons it gives for delaying the Meskhetian repatriation are not genuine ones.”

“It [Tbilisi] asserts that the Meskhetian Turks’ villages have been inhabited by Georgians since the 1940s and that there is nowhere to put them,” Yunusov said. “But there are at least 80 villages in Meskhetia that remain empty to this day.”

While many Meskhetians cling to the hope that the repatriation issue will be resolved soon, some believe that Tbilisi, along with international agencies, are simply ignoring the plight of a politically weak group. “Certain people are propagating the view that if we return there will be bloodshed, that there will be an invasion of Turks wielding scimitars,” says Bekir Mamoyev, who heads an expatriate organization called Vatan (Homeland) in Russia and Azerbaijan.
[...]
Yunusov suggests latent Turkophobia is helping to shape Georgia’s repatriation stance. “There is an idea in Georgia that once they open the doors, the country will be overrun with Turks. The reality is that many, especially the younger generation, will not want to uproot and start all over again in Georgia,” he said.

According to Mamoyev, the Georgian government is using scare tactics to create opposition to the return of the Akhiska Turks (he claims this is the correct Turkish name for his people). Vatan insists that any repatriation must be to Samtskhe-Javakheti itself. However, Tbilisi, wanting to minimize tensions between Meskhetian Turks and the predominant ethnic Armenian population in Javakheti, says that the returnees should resettle across the country."

Document(s): Open document

23.01.2003 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

IWPR: Widespread opposition against return of Meshketian Turks ("Meskhetian Return Stirs Georgian Dissent") [#10579],  [ID 5062]

"The majority of the Georgian and Armenian population in the southern Samtskhe-Javakheti region, from where the Meskhetians were deported from 60 years ago, is strongly opposed to their return.

Ivane Apriamashvili, a student who lives near Makaridze, told IWPR that he has had no problems with the returnees, "But they're not like other neighbours," he said.

"They don't make an effort to get to know us - the whole Makaridze family is very closed. In any case, whatever they say, I don't think of them as Georgians."

Temur Gogoladze, an engineer in the town of Akhaltsikhe, is more outspoken. "If Tbilisi insists on resettling the Turks and dares to begin this process, all of us, with the Armenians, will take up our axes," he said.

"We won't allow a repeat of the nightmare which our grandfathers and parents lived through. You lot in Tbilisi will get another Abkhazia in Javakheti."

Views like this are a reason - or perhaps an excuse - for the Georgian government to stall on the commitments it has made on the Meskhetian Turk issue.


In 1998 the Council of Europe made the repatriation of the Meskhetians a condition of Georgia's accession to the institution. The council gave Tbilisi two years to pass a law on repatriation, three years to begin the actual return and twelve years overall to complete the entire process.

More than four years later, that schedule is in tatters as while the draft law on repatriation has been drawn up, it has not yet been put to parliament. Meanwhile, only 649 Meskhetians have returned to Georgia at their own peril, with only eight families resettling in Samtskhe-Javakheti itself.

The Georgian government responds to criticism by saying that it is still coping with the problem of more than 200,000 refugees from the war in Abkhazia, and that it has no land to accommodate tens of thousands of returnees.

Another argument - not cited by Georgian officials but mentioned frequently in parliament and in Samtskhe-Javakheti - is a fear that the returning Meskhetians could become a destabilising political force on Georgia's border with Turkey."

Document(s): Open document

09.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Meshketian refugees in Georgia ("Mid - Year Progress Report 2002") [#47516],  [ID 5063]

"Currently, 643 Meskhetian refugees reside in Georgia and an estimated 200,000 are living in a precarious situation in neighbouring countries. Georgia does not have a legal framework permitting repatriation and integration for those who wish to return to their places of origin. A draft law on these Formerly Deported Persons (FDP), prepared by the authorities, was discussed during a
meeting convened by the Council of Europe(CoE) with representatives from the Georgian Ministry of Justice, OSCE, and IOM. Comments from the CoE experts were
accepted by the authorities and an interagency follow-up meeting took place in
Strasbourg in May 2002. A two-pronged approach of enhancing the legal status of
Meskhetians in their countries of current residence and supporting Georgia in adopting access to citizenship in Georgia."

Document(s): Open document

06.2002 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

US Committee for Refugees: Vast majority of Meshketians continued to face official and public opposition to their return ("World Refugee Survey 2002 - Georgia") [#10678],  [ID 5065]

"The Law on Refugees replaced legislation that had enabled returning Meskhetian Turks—who were deported en masse to Central Asia during the Stalin era—to legalize their stay in Georgia. Of nearly 280,000 formerly deported Meskhetians from Georgia, thousands fled persecution or were expelled a second time from Central Asia at the time of the breakup of the Soviet Union and were living as stateless persons in Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and elsewhere in the CIS.

Although President Shevardnadze issued a decree in 1999 to begin the process of Meskhetian repatriation within three years, on February 5, 2001, he told a press conference that implementation of the plan would take ten years. He suggested that it would not be reasonable to repatriate the Meskhetian Turks to Georgia, given the current situation in the country. Although Georgian authorities had drafted a law for the rehabilitation of people deported during the 1940s, the law had not been enacted by the end of 2001. The vast majority of Meskhetians continued to face official and public opposition to their return. Of the 644 Meskhetians living in Georgia who lost their legal status in 1998, 32 remained without Georgian citizenship at year’s end."

Document(s): Open document

05.03.2002 - Source: Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe

SFH: No infrastructure for repatriation of Meshketians ("Lageanalyse Februar 2002") [#8057],  [ID 5066]

"Im November 1944 liess Stalin 90‘000-200’000 MeschetInnen nach Zentralasien deportieren.
Die Familien, die den Transport überlebten, wurden, um sie zu entwurzeln, überall zerstreut
und ihre Namen geändert, so konnten sich die Familienangehörigen auch nach dem
Krieg nicht wieder finden.
1956 – nach Beginn des Entstalinisierungsprozesses in der Sowjetunion – durften die MeschetInnen
Zentralasien verlassen und nach Aserbaidschan – nicht aber nach Georgien
umsiedeln. Ein Teil der MeschetInnen machte von diesem Recht Gebrauch, um näher bei
Georgien zu sein. 1989 kam es im usbekischen Fergana-Tal zu einem Pogrom gegen die
MeschetInnen. Viele flüchteten in der Folge in die südrussische Region Krasnodar oder
nach Aserbaidschan. Die Tatsache, dass seit dem Zerfall der Sowjetunion die etwa 300'000 MeschetInnen durch
internationale Grenzen von einander getrennt sind, kompliziert ihre Lage zusätzlich und
steht einem gemeinsamen, koordinierten Vorgehen um die Geltendmachung ihrer Rechte im
Wege. In Russland versucht man sie zur Emigration in die Türkei zu zwingen. Die Türkei
und Aserbaidschan zeigen sich den MeschetInnen gegenüber toleranter.
Die wenigen zuvor nach Georgien zurückgekehrten MeschetInnen wurden zur Zeit von
Gamsachurdia von den lokalen Milizen wieder vertrieben. Nach 1992 erlaubte Präsident
Schewardnadse die Rückkehr der MeschetInnen unter der Bedingung, dass sie sich überall
in Georgien verstreuten, nicht aber in Meschetien niederliessen und ihre Namen in georgische
änderten. Die türkisch orientierten MeschetInnen interpretierten dies als einen Versuch
zur Assimilierung, die pro-georgischen als ein erstes positives Anzeichen. Zu einer
Umsetzung der Rücksiedlung kam es ohnehin nicht. Der Europarat räumte Georgien 1999
– anlässlich seiner Aufnahme in ihre Reihen – eine Frist von zwei Jahren ein, um ein Gesetz
zur Rückkehr, Einbürgerung und Integration der MeschetInnen zu erlassen und zwölf Jahre
zum Abschluss des Repatriierungsprozesses. In Georgien fehlen allerdings einerseits die
notwendigen Strukturen zur Repatriierung, anderseits ist das Land mit den beinahe
300'000 IDPs überlastet. Um die Hausaufgaben des Europarates erfüllen zu können, ist
Georgien auf internationale Hilfe (EU, UNHCR, OSZE etc.) angewiesen.76
Im Dezember 2001 begann die "NGO" Union of Georgian Repatriates mit der Durchführung
des vom Europarat finanziell unterstützten Programms "Interethnischer Dialog für konfliktfreie
Repatriierung". Mit diesem Projekt, das sich auch auf die Erfahrungen mit der Rückführung
der Krim-Tataren abstützen kann, will man in erster Linie den Dialog zwischen der
heutigen Bevölkerung Meschetiens und den Deportierten in Gang bringen. Ausserdem versucht man damit das Vertrauen zwischen den vom Informationsfluss verunsicherten Bevölkerungsgruppen
aufzubauen und zu fördern."

Document(s): Open document

2002 - Source: Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development

Report on the Azeri, Armenian and Meskhetian minorities ("Ethnic-Confessional Groups and Challenges to Civic Integration in Georgia. Azeri, Javakheti Armenian and Muslim Meskhetian Communities.") [#8276],  [ID 5064]

Document(s): Open document
cpidd-geo2002-minorities.pdf

13.09.2001 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Council of Europe: Only one-third of the approximately 230 000 to 300 000 Meshketians living outside Georgia would wish to return ("Honouring of obligations and commitments by Georgia [Doc. 9191]") [#10653],  [ID 5068]

"160. Upon its accession, Georgia undertook

« to adopt, within two years after its accession, a legal framework permitting repatriation and integration, including the right to Georgian nationality, for the Meskhetian population deported by the Soviet regime, to consult the Council of Europe about this legal framework before its adoption, to begin the process of repatriation and integration within three years after its accession and complete the process of repatriation of the Meskhetian population within twelve years after its accession.”

161. During our May visit the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Zhvania, told us that the commitment related to the granting of Georgian nationality to the Meshketian population – deported from the Meshketian region of Georgia to Siberia and Central Asia in 1944 by Stalin – and their repatriation was not simply a technical matter, but required a political decision by President Shevarnadze and himself. But he said they were ready to work on this matter.

162. It seems that, in any case, only one-third of the approximately 230 000 to 300 000 Meshketians living outside Georgia would wish to return. On the other hand, the Georgian leadership had promised to grant those who lived in Georgia Georgian citizenship; currently, only five out of 107 applicants are now citizens of Georgia."

Document(s): Open document

01.12.2000 - Source: Danish Immigration Service

Danish Immigration Service: Meshketians still have difficulties in returning to Georgia ("Report on roving attaché mission to Georgia") [#6081],  [ID 5067]

"According to the UNHCR, CIPDD and Norwegian Refugee Council, the Meskhetians who were deported in Stalin's time still have difficulties in returning to Georgia, and only 50 or 60 of the 600 who have settled in Georgia have received citizenship. The Norwegian Refugee Council added that to get citizenship they had to speak fluent Georgian and take Georgian names. In connection with its membership of the Council of Europe, Georgia signed an agreement in which it committed itself to taking back 300 000 Meskhetians. There is much public opposition to allowing the Meskhetians to return, as they originally came from the southern area which borders Armenia, and which is chiefly inhabited by Armenians. As Armenians have a general and historically based feeling against Turks, which they believe the Meskhetians to be, it is feared that resettling the latter will lead to ethnic unrest. Already there is a danger that the social situation will worsen, according to the Ombudsman, since several of the Russian bases in the area, which have provided work for many Armenians, are to close. The question of the resettlement of the Meskhetians has led to intense debate in the media (see the leader from The Georgian Times dated 18 October 2000, in Annex 3). One of the parties which has been most strongly opposed to the resettlement is, according to CIPDD, one of the very right wing and nationalist parties National Movement - Georgia First of All. The Chairman of the party, Guram Sharadze, is also the Chairman of the Migration and Georgian Foreign Residents Affairs' Committee, which is a fiercely patriotic organisation."

Document(s): Open document