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Deported Lokianis Family Dreams of Traveling to Russia Again

October 31, 2007

One year has passed since Georgians were deported from Russia. The Lokianis family was among them, now living in their hometown of Akhaltsikhe.

Tension between Georgia and Russia had reached the ultimate level in late September 2006. The number of people deported from Russia was increasing and police were detaining and arresting Georigans in the streets. Several Georgian citizens died as a result of Russian xenophobia. Zhuzhuna and Nodar Lokianis’s family were victims of this deportation.

They returned to Georgia in October of 2006. They had lived in the Mitina District of Moscow for ten years with their son Anton. Many other Georgians lived in this neighborhood as well.

Zhuzhuna Lokiani worked as a cook in a café while her husband and son worked at an auto-service station. They earned quite a lot of money and assisted other members of their family in Georgia.

Mrs. Zhuzhuna recalled that they did not expect the situation to change so dramatically. “We were hiding for a month. Our neighbor was taking care of us and brought food to us. We were waiting for a free plane. Finally, having lost all hope, we flew to Yerevan.”

Nowadays, Zhuzhuna Lokiani works as a cook in one of the café in Akhaltsikhe. Her working day starts at 9:00 AM and lasts until 10:00 PM. Her salary is too small, amounting to only five lari a day. Her husband is a taxi-driver and earns some money to live on.

“Saakashvili promised us employment when we arrived in Georgia. Does he think that he has employed us?” Zhuzhuna asks.

Their son, Anton, remained in Moscow with his wife’s family. His parents say their son is not in danger now.

The family of Lokianis has not sought help from any organization. “We did not know whom to seek out,” they said.

No organization in Akhaltsikhe has statistics on deportees. Officials from the Akhaltsikhe Municipality do not consider deportation to be a problem. The chairman of the Municipality stated that he was not concerned with the issue yet.

On March 26, 2007, the Georgian Ministry of Justice brought a suit against the Russian Federation in the European Court of Human Rights. The basis for the suit was Russia’s blatant violation of the deportees’ rights. The Georgian government urged the European Court to require the Russian side to reimburse victims for both moral and material damage. The deportees hoped that the Georgian state would assist them.

The Lokianis now consider their rights in their homeland to have been violated. Although their experience of living in fear and under threat for one month in Russia was a terrible experience for them, they dream of returning to Russia again.

“We are trying to live on. It is not a normal life. We want to go back to Russia. We cannot live on here in similar conditions,’ said Zhuzhuna.

Gulo Kokhodze, Akhaltsikhe

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