Do Chechen Refugees Feel Safe in Georgia?

Do Chechen Refugees Feel Safe in Georgia?

Despite the fact that the Georgian government has given shelter to Chechen refugees in Georgia along with security guarantees, these refugees remain in a position of vulnerability.  This has been felt during the last years, in which time the Georgian government itself is often responsible for the violations.

Twelve Chechens who escaped from the conflict area came to Georgia looking for shelter. The Georgian government guaranteed their security, and some of them were taken to hospital as they had health problems and needed medical assistance.

The same Chechens were identified as terrorists by the Russian government, which requested their immediate extradition. Five of them were extradited by Shevardnadze’s government, and information about their whereabouts or status remains unavailable. There was a danger of the rest of the Chechens being extradited to Russia, and the Georgian government launched a criminal case accusing the Chechens of illegally transporting weapons.  In the case of a guilty verdict, they may serve their sentence in Georgia, in which case they would not be extradited.

According to Khizri Aldamov, the leader of Chechen Diaspora, those Chechens agreed to confess to the crime in order to survive, although they did not have any weapons. But he also explained that they faced resistance and aggression from the prosecutor’s office.

About a year later the Regional Court tried Geladaev, Alkhanov and Alikhchaev, and they were released. After their release two of the Chechens suddenly disappeared, and some time later Khizri Aldamov received information about their disappearance.  He was informed that the employees of the Anti-Terrorist Center had taken them to Larsi, where on neutral territory the Chechens were subsequently taken by the Russians. “I am convinced that there are still pro-Russian people in the Georgian law enforcement structures, who are loyal to the Russian policy regarding this issue. Unfortunately we still do not have information about the fate of the kidnapped Chechens. Despite many attempts the investigation has had no results. Neither the Strasbourg Court not the UN and Red Cross have managed to find out what the conditions of the Chechens are in Russia. I think that these people are lost and there is absolutely no chance for their return” – stated Aldamov.

It has become almost impossible for people of Chechen nationality to enter Georgian territory, whether or not they have a visa and respective documents. Georgian citizens of Chechen nationality face the same problem, and though they get visas in the Embassies without any obstacles, they are often still not admitted into Georgia. Khizri Aldamov says that his relatives, among them his wife and three-year-old child, are not allowed into Georgia because of their Chechen nationality.

Georgian law enforcers send information and photos of Chechens detained for illegal border crossing to Russia in order to find out if they are wanted by the Russian authorities. According to Khizri Aldamov in this case the Georgian government should demand the list of wanted people first, and then take necessary action based on the information that they already possess.

International human rights organization Human Rights Watch accuses Russia of conducting a crime against humanity. This is according to Rachel Denber, acting director of Human Rights Watch’s Europe and Central Asia Division, who says that the sheer number of lost people in Chechnya is so huge that it qualifies as a crime against humanity.

According to the Human Rights Watch data, three to five thousand Chechens have disappeared since 1999.  The organization’s website gives specific facts on the disappearances, and it is assumed that most of the missing people have died after being tortured.