Armenians of Javakhk oppose return of Meskheti Turks to region
23.08.2007,
04:30
Armenians of Javakhk (region of Georgia populated by Armenians) strongly oppose return of Meskheti Turks to the region, Chairman of “Javakhk” Association MP Shirak Torosian told ARKA agency.
YEREVAN, August 22. /ARKA/. Armenians of Javakhk (region of Georgia populated by Armenians) strongly oppose return of Meskheti Turks to the region, Chairman of “Javakhk” Association MP Shirak Torosian told ARKA agency. According to him, return of Meskheti Turks may aggravate the situation in the region.
“Georgian Government is not very happy either for their return but they are ready to do it due to the obligations to the Council of Europe,” Torosian said.
According to the MP, the Georgian Government intends to resettle Meskheti Turks to Javakhk bearing in mind the low prices for land and housing in the region.
“On whose territories and in whose houses they are going to live? Everybody is aware of the problems existing in communication between Armenian and Turkish population,” Torosian said.
“As of now, no single Meskheti Turk is resettled in Javakhk, and, I strongly believe, will not do it,” he said.
On July 11 the Georgian Parliament passed the law about repatriation of persons forcedly resettled from Georgia in 1940ies by the Soviet authorities. No particular discussions were held while passing the law.
Under the law, Meskheti Muslims called also Meskheti Turks are to return to Georgia. The law envisages the procedure of the return, submission of required documents and receiving of the repatriate status and citizenship. Under the law, the deadline for the applications to return to Georgia is January 1 2009.
According to the obligations to the Council of Europe, Georgia needs to solve the issue by the end of 2011.
About 300,000 so-called Meskheti Turks (Muslim Georgians) living in the south-eastern region of Georgia – Meskhetia – at the border with Turkey, were resettled to the Central Asia in the mid 1940ies by the order of the Soviet leadership. The Soviet authorities considered it dangerous to have Muslim Georgians living at the Soviet-Turkish border. Currently descendants of the forced re-settlers live in Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Turkey. N.V. –0--
“Georgian Government is not very happy either for their return but they are ready to do it due to the obligations to the Council of Europe,” Torosian said.
According to the MP, the Georgian Government intends to resettle Meskheti Turks to Javakhk bearing in mind the low prices for land and housing in the region.
“On whose territories and in whose houses they are going to live? Everybody is aware of the problems existing in communication between Armenian and Turkish population,” Torosian said.
“As of now, no single Meskheti Turk is resettled in Javakhk, and, I strongly believe, will not do it,” he said.
On July 11 the Georgian Parliament passed the law about repatriation of persons forcedly resettled from Georgia in 1940ies by the Soviet authorities. No particular discussions were held while passing the law.
Under the law, Meskheti Muslims called also Meskheti Turks are to return to Georgia. The law envisages the procedure of the return, submission of required documents and receiving of the repatriate status and citizenship. Under the law, the deadline for the applications to return to Georgia is January 1 2009.
According to the obligations to the Council of Europe, Georgia needs to solve the issue by the end of 2011.
About 300,000 so-called Meskheti Turks (Muslim Georgians) living in the south-eastern region of Georgia – Meskhetia – at the border with Turkey, were resettled to the Central Asia in the mid 1940ies by the order of the Soviet leadership. The Soviet authorities considered it dangerous to have Muslim Georgians living at the Soviet-Turkish border. Currently descendants of the forced re-settlers live in Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Turkey. N.V. –0--
