Tevdoradze: Meskhetin Turks' Repatriation Must Be Postponed

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Subject: Tevdoradze: Meskhetin Turks' Repatriation Must Be Postponed

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Tevdoradze: Meskhetin Turks' Repatriation Must Be Postponed


RIA OREANDA Economic News
December 17, 2001

Enactment of Law On Meskhetin Turks' Repatriation Must Be Postponed,
-Yelena Tevdoradze

Tbilisi. Yelena Tevdoradze, the chairman of Georgia's Parliamentary
Committee for Human Rights, declared for the postponement of passing
the law on the repatriation of the Meskhetin Turks deported in
Stalin's time till 2005-2006. She declared on Friday: "Georgia is
obliged to carry out the repatriation within the period of 2002-2012
in accordance with the recommendation of the Council of Europe". The
parliamentarian suggests showing the reality of Samtskhe-Javakheti, a
region in the South of Georgia, to members of the monitoring group of
the Council of Europe. The Armenians who live in the region are
against the repatriation.

Georgia must not be afraid of declaring to the Council of Europe that
its commitment of the Meskhetin Turks' repatriation remains in force,
and asking for the postponement of the law enactment till the solution
of its interior problems, - Yelena Tevdoradze said.

The following issues are among them: Georgia's territorial integrity,
refugees' return home, stabilization of the national economy. "The
matter may concern about 70 thousand Meskhetin Turks, and it does not
mean that all of them will return home. It is appropriate raise the
question of granting civic rights to the Meskhetin Turks in the
countries where they live now - Russia and Uzbekistan", - the official
said.

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