01.2007 - Source: Human Rights Center

Report on situation of Chechen refugees in Georgia between 1999 and 2006 (Asylum and Nonrefoulment; cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; access to courts; access to employment; future prospects) ("Silence kills: Abuse of Chechen Refugees in Georgia") [ID 18546]

Approximately 8,000 refugees from the Russian Federation have sought refuge in Georgia since the resumption of the Chechen conflict in 1999. It is still unsafe for the refugees to return to their homeland, where they face harassment, extortion and the possibility of being "disappeared".

Document(s): Open document

07.01.2005 - Source: Civil Georgia

Russian Foreign Ministry expressed protest against release of ethnic Chechen prisoners in Tbilisi, who were arrested by Georgian border guards for suspected illegal crossing border and possession of arms in 2002 ("Russia Protests Release of Chechen Prisoners in Georgia") [#43443],  [ID 5083]

Document(s): Open document

10.2003 - Source: Human Rights Center

00.10.2003 - HRIDC: Acquitted Chechen Khzmat Isiev to be charged again ("Monthly Bulletin 10 (56), October 2003") [#17235],  [ID 5084]

"The criminal trial of Chechen Khzmat Isiev ended with his acquittal. As a result, Akhmat Isiev will now be tried in Mtatsminda-Krtsanisi court on a different charge.

Akhmat Isiev is one of the 13 Chechens who were detained on 4 August and charged with illegal border crossing and illegal possession of weapons. The defendants, members of the NGO “Article 42 of the Constitution,” were successfully defended by their lawyers and acquit-ted.

Currently new charges are now being brought against Isiev. According to the accusation, Isiev is accused of participating in armed resistance with other prisoners against guards on 4 OctoOctober 2002 who were taking Chechen prisoners from isolation to be extradited. The Mtatsminda-Krtsanisni court will discuss the case."

Document(s): Open document

22.07.2003 - Source: Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation

Statements of interview partners with regards to the situation of ethnic Chechens ("Reisebericht Georgien 18. - 25. Mai 2003") [#14436],  [ID 5085]

"Die georgische Regierung habe sich in der Vergangenheit zwar wiederholt für die
Repatriierung der tschetschenischen Flüchtlinge ausgesprochen, auf der anderen Seite aber
immer wieder auf ihre Bereitschaft hingewiesen, die Flüchtlinge so lange zu schützen, wie es
notwendig sei.54
Dennoch seien im August 2002 fünf von 13 wegen illegalem Grenzübertritt verhaftete
Tschetschenen ohne Auslieferungsverfahren unmittelbar nach ihrer Festnahme nach
Tschetschenien zurückgeschickt worden. Alle 13 hätten sofort nach ihrem Aufgriff bei den
georgischen Behörden um Asyl angesucht.55
Im Dezember 2002 seien fünf tschetschenische Flüchtlinge von georgischen
Sicherheitskräften in Akhmeta geschlagen und anschließend verhaftet worden. Zwei von
ihnen seien nach drei Tagen mit der Auflage freigelassen worden, innerhalb von 72 Stunden
Georgien zu verlassen. Einer der Tschetschenen, der wegen Drogenbesitzes verhaftet
worden sei, habe UNHCR Mitarbeitern berichtet, in Telavi gefoltert worden zu sein. Eine
strafrechtliche Verfolgung des Falles sei inzwischen aufgrund mangelnder Beweise
abgebrochen worden.
Am 7. Dezember 2002 habe es in Tbilisi eine Spezialoperation gegeben. Alle in Tbilisi
lebenden Tschetschenen seien aufgerufen worden, um fünf Uhr morgens auf der zuständigen
Polizeistation zu erscheinen. Dort solle man von ihnen Fingerabdrücke, Fotos und sogar Videoaufzeichnungen gemacht haben. Nach Angaben der Behörden wäre dieses Vorgehen
nicht gegen tschetschenische Flüchtlinge gerichtet, sondern eine notwendige Maßnahme zur
Bekämpfung der illegalen Migration gewesen.56
Von unregelmäßig statt findenden Verhaftungen von Flüchtlingen höre UNHCR meistens erst
zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt. UNHCR verfüge in diesem Zusammenhang über keine genauen
Informationen, räume aber ein, dass es zu Misshandlungen während solcher Verhaftungen
kommen könne."

Document(s): Open document

01.07.2003 - Source: Civil Georgia

The Tbilisi District Court ruled on June 30 that the cancellation of the refugee status for Ruslan Gelogaev, which is wanted by Russia for alleged links with Chechen rebels, was illegal ("Alleged Chechen Militant Avoids Extradition") [#13984],  [ID 5086]

Document(s): Open document

28.05.2003 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Chechen refugee, Hussein Yusupov, disappeared on 25 September 2002, after he had been unlawfully detained in the anti-terrorism center of the State Security Service in Tbilisi ("Open Letter to the President of Georgia, Mr. Shevarnadze, on the Disappearance of Chechen Student") [#13137],  [ID 5087]

Document(s): Open document

25.03.2003 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch: U.S.-supported anti-terror measures in Georgia have focused on the Pankisi Gorge and on Georgia's Chechen population ("In the Name of Counter-Terrorism: Human Rights Abuses Worldwide") [#11602],  [ID 5088]

"U.S.-supported anti-terror measures in Georgia have focused on the Pankisi Gorge and on Georgia's Chechen population. In implementing these measures the government has committed serious human rights violations, which it refuses to address. President Eduard Shevardnadze indicated the government's attitude toward observing human rights in its counter-terrorism campaign on October 5, 2002, one day after Georgia had extradited five Chechens to Russia without due process, when he said: "International human rights commitments might become pale in comparison with the importance of the anti-terrorist campaign.
[...]
Georgian operations in the Pankisi Gorge at times have been arbitrary and brutal. Georgian forces have committed at least one extrajudicial execution, several "disappearances," summary extraditions, arbitrary detentions, and discrimination on the basis of racial and ethnic identity.
[...]
Human Rights Watch has documented four "disappearances," one extrajudicial execution, and cases of incommunicado detention, attributable to Georgian security forces engaged in counter-terrorism.

On April 28, 2002 three men of Arab origin "disappeared" after a uniformed military detachment detained them from their car. Witnesses reported that the troops handcuffed the men's driver, Vizuri Khangoshvili, shot him fatally in the stomach, and left him in a ditch. TIME magazine reported that this action was carried out on the basis of "real time intelligence" provided by the United States.22

On September 25, 2002, Chechen refugee Hussein Yussupov "disappeared" while in Security Ministry detention after being detained for five days in the Pankisi Gorge.

On December 6, 2002, a National Security Ministry unit killed four of the five passengers of a car traveling near Lagodekhi, eastern Georgia. No government investigation into these killings has been undertaken. Two of the passengers were from the Russian north Caucasus Karachai-Cherkess Republic, and had been implicated by Russia in the Moscow and Volgodonsk apartment block bombings of September 1999. One of the two, Yusuf Krymshamkhalov, survived the incident and was summarily extradited the next day to Russia. This was despite a new extradition appeals procedure instituted by the Supreme Court in late October 2002.
[...]
In a massive passport check in Tbilisi on December 7, 2002, police briefly detained nearly one hundred ethnic Chechens, including some minors. Given the context, many in Georgia believed this operation to be connected with counter-terrorism efforts, though no offical publicly linked the two. The Interior Ministry spokesman fended off accusations that the detainees were targeted due to their Chechen ethnicity with the comment: "We also took seven Negroes.25" The Interior Ministry spokesman stated that the operation was undertaken on U.S. recommendation, and in newspaper interviews, the U.S. ambassador expressed cautious approval for the operation."

Document(s): Open document

23.12.2002 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

IHF: Violations of the rights of ethnic Chechens ("Violations of the Rights of Chechens in Georgia") [#10113],  [ID 5089]

"The International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) is deeply concerned about violations of the rights of ethnic Chechens in Georgia and by the justification of these violations as being necessary for anti-terrorist operations.

On 4th October 2002, under pressure from Russian authorities, Georgian authorities extradited five Chechens to Russia without a court decision and promised to extradite others wanted by Russia in the near future. This procedure violates Georgian law as well the European Convention on Human Rights and the standards of the Council of Europe.

In an interview on the day following the extraditions, President Shevardnadze stated, “International human rights commitments might become pale in comparison with the importance of the anti-terrorist campaign.”

There is concern among the human rights community and international organizations that such a public statement made by the President will influence pending cases and future decisions regarding the extradition of Chechens to Russia.

On 7 December 2002, in Tblisi, as part of the so-called broad anti-terrorist operation, the Interior Ministry and security officials arrested and detained about a hundred Chechen refugees, including women and children. It was reported that there have been multiple violations of the rights of the detained persons, including the denial of access to lawyers of the detainees’ choice, as well as intimidation. Before being released, fingerprints of the detained were taken, as in the case of suspects, and without a court decision.

On the same day, in another set of events, Georgian forces killed five Chechen men said to be wanted by the Russian Federation. The IHF is concerned with this arbitrary execution of suspects by Georgian forces under obscure circumstances.

In November 2002, the IHF conducted a fact-finding mission to the Pankisi Gorge. We are concerned about the welfare and human rights of refugees from Chechnya living there. Since September 2002, and up to this day, access to Pankisi is restricted, especially for local civil society representatives and independent media, under the pretext of anti-terrorist operations conducted there. This makes it almost impossible for independent groups to monitor the behavior of police forces deployed in the Pankisi Gorge as well as the situation of Chechen refugees there.

Since September 2002, during so-called anti-terrorist measures conducted jointly by the Georgian Security Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, “mopping-up” operations were carried out among Chechen refugees in the Pankisi Gorge. In the course of these operations refugees were intimated and maltreated, including the case of a disappeared young Chechen male: On 20th September 2002, 25-year-old year old Hussein Yusupov was taken from a checkpoint within the Pankisi Gorge to the Anti-Terrorist Center in Tblisi. He was kept there, without a trial, for five days. Georgian authorities claim that he was released on 25th September, but since then he has been missing.

Due to the insecurity of their situation in Georgia refugees from Chechnya demand to go to a safe third country – except Russia. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) supports this demand."

Document(s): Open document

12.12.2002 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

IWPR: Crackdown on Chechens in Georgia ("Georgia Cracks Down on Chechens") [#9953],  [ID 5090]

"Dozens of Chechen families living in Tbilisi had a rude awakening on the morning of December 7. Before dawn, at around 5 or 6 am, large groups of armed policemen burst into apartments and homes in different parts of the Georgian capital.

"They hammered on the door, got people straight out of their beds and took them away," Mamed Ediev, a Chechen writer detained in the raids, told IWPR. "And imagine how embarrassed we felt in front of our neighbours, who came outside because of the noise - and there we were looking as though we'd been exposed as bandits and terrorists."

A few hours later, the Georgian interior ministry said that the detentions were part of a planned anti-terrorist operation that was not specifically aimed at Chechens. [...]
Relations between Georgia and the separatist government in Chechnya, once excellent, have deteriorated in recent months. Georgia took in 4,000 refugees fleeing the second Chechen campaign that began in 1999 and turned a blind eye to the presence on its territory of rebel fighters.

But after the Moscow theatre siege in October, the Georgians closed down the Tbilisi office of separatist president Aslan Maskhadov.

Under pressure from Moscow, Georgia also decided to extradite to Russia eight of 13 Chechen fighters whom its border guards detained, as they attempted to cross the frontier in August. Five were sent to Russia in October and two weeks ago the Georgians announced that a further three were being extradited.

Since then Chechen rebels have hinted they may retaliate. On December 6, the day before the security swoop, the 24 Hours newspaper received a letter from Chechen field commander Doku Umarov, in which he warned of violence in Georgia if any more fighters were sent to Russia."

Document(s): Open document

20.11.2002 - Source: Refugees International

Refugees International: Humanitarian situation of Chechen refugees in the Pankisi Gorge ("Chechen Refugees in Georgia: Grateful, but Still Seeking Safety and Support") [#9697],  [ID 5092]

"The refugees are concerned about the lack of economic opportunity. There is little chance for employment, including few prospects for young people to use their skills. "Families get money where they can. Most live from month to month," reported one aid worker. "It is the ones in Pankisi who are really desperate and have a lot of needs --- finding food and dwellings." In the Gorge, the majority of the refugees live among the mostly supportive local population, though their hosts are growing weary of the burden. There are few solutions to the overcrowding because there is nowhere for the ‘guests’ to relocate to, and there is no more space available in public buildings. In addition, the majority of the households do not have regular electricity or gas. Those who don’t have wood for heat ask children to collect it. The water situation has improved recently with help of non-governmental agencies, but there is need for further efforts. "It is such a situation that I would not let the enemy live here," one refugee told RI.

Families who live in the Pankisi describe challenges of educating their children due to organizational problems, poor attendance due to illness and lack of ability to focus, and the level of education itself (teachers who have not been paid in years or are volunteers and lack of textbooks in some classes). "Our children have no future," one parent remarked. Non-emergency medical care is also a concern. "Unless there is severe need, they won’t take patients," RI was told."

Document(s): Open document

04.06.2002 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Council of Europe: 70% of the Chechen refugees in the Pankisi Gorge are hosted by the local population, 30% live in communal centres ("Situation of refugees and displaced persons in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia [Doc. 9480]") [#7836],  [ID 5093]

"88. Concerning the situation of 8 000 Chechen refugees staying in the Pankisi Valley, the main concern is to prevent any hasty and premature repatriation. 70% are hosted by the local population, 30% live in communal centres. All of them are dependent on international assistance. Any returns should be made on voluntary basis, and only when security conditions in Chechnya will be satisfactory."

Document(s): Open document

03.2002 - Source: University of California Berkeley - Institute of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies

Most inhabitants in Pankisi region are ethnic Chechens and Ingush; called Kists in Georgian they number approximately 5,000 ("Georgia's Pankisi Gorge: An Ethnographic Survey") [#37322],  [ID 5094]

"About eight miles long and two and a half miles wide, the Pankisi Gorge is located just south of the Georgian-Chechen border in the Georgian district of Akhmeta. [...] Today, most of the inhabitants of the Pankisi region are descendants of ethnic Chechens and Ingush (who together share the common ethnonym Vainakh) who migrated into the region from the North Caucasus between 1830 and 1870. Called Kists in Georgian, they are typically bilingual in Chechen and Georgian and number approximately 5,000."

Document(s): Open document

13.09.2001 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Council of Europe: Chechen refugees in Georgia ("Honouring of obligations and commitments by Georgia [Doc. 9191]") [#10653],  [ID 5095]

"151. Georgia honoured its commitment and ratified the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereto, before expiry of the deadline in May 1999.

152. Recently, the arrival of Chechen refugees was a test for the implementation of the Geneva Convention. UNHCR representatives said they were satisfied with the way in which Georgia granted asylum and provided accommodation to these refugees, in application of the Geneva Convention."

Document(s): Open document