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Preface
When the Soviet Union dissolved nearly a decade ago, the consequences of a variety of historical injustices were dramatically revealed. One of the most poignant travesties concerns whole peoples who were deported to Central Asia by communist dictator Josef Stalin in 1944. These formerly deported peoples include the Crimean Tatars, who have now returned in significant numbers to their homeland in Ukraine.This report concerns the Meskhetian Turks, a less well-known victimized people who were not only deported en masse in 1944, but who were also subjected in 1989 to a pogrom in the Fergana Valley in what is now Uzbekistan. Dispersed in Central Asia (Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan), Russia, Ukraine, and Azerbaijan (where most have re-located), the Meskhetian Turks aspire to return to their ancestral homeland in Georgia. Only a relative handful have been permitted to return, and many live in difficult circumstances in places such as the Krasnodar region of Russia, where they are often subject to discriminatory and abusive treatment by local authorities, such as in the granting or withholding of residency permits.
Issues of identity and lack of cohesive leadership permeate the situation of the Meskhetian Turks, who have not yet been officially “rehabilitated”; there has been no official pronouncement that they have been historically wronged. The issue of identity runs so deep that there is some dispute even as to the name of this formerly deported people. This report uses the term “Meskhetian Turks”, in line with most prior usage and the precedent established at a September 1998 meeting in The Hague, which included leaders from the Vatan organization in Azerbaijan and Russia. Vatan is a leadership element in the Meskhetian Turk movement. The Georgian government prefers to use the term “Meskhetians”, but the Georgian delegation to the Hague meeting, which included both governmental and nongovernmental representatives, accepted the use of the term Meskhetian Turks for working purposes. It is for these reasons that the term is used in this report.
The needs of the Meskhetian Turks range widely depending on the country in which they are located. Some need protection in the face of human rights violations, including citizenship status as a guarantor of human rights. Others need durable solutions related to relocation and local integration, such as customs duties and travel facilities for the repatriation movement itself. Repatriation, as used in this report, however, is a broad concept, signifying a just solution, including rehabilitation of the Meskhetian Turks. The notion of solution in this sense includes economic and social development, which are lacking, and the need for capacity building both among the Meskhetian Turks and in the affected countries.
The report examines the economic, social, and political dimensions of issues concerning the Meskhetian Turks. Strategies to fortify both human and national security are put forth, and specific recommendations are made to manage the issue in ways that could ameliorate hardships and prevent inter-ethnic tensions, thus preventing forced displacement. A comprehensive approach designed to manage these issues in a humane fashion is needed.
International attention to the plight of the Meskhetian Turks is embryonic. A notable development was the September 7-10, 1998, meeting in The Hague of representatives of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and the Meskhetian Turks, under the sponsorship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s High Commissioner on National Minorities, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and the Open Society Institute’s Forced Migration Projects. The meeting resulted in consensus on a framework document for future action, which is included in the appendix of this report. The recommendations of this report were distributed for comment at The Hague meeting.
Comprehensive action by the international community is warranted, and may yet be forthcoming. The gravity of the situation is reflected in the outcome of a demonstration in September 1998 in Georgia staged by disgruntled Meskhetian Turks. About 80 Meskhetian Turks from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the Russian Federation staged a protest in front of the State Chancellery in central Tbilisi, calling on Georgian authorities to rehabilitate the formerly deported people and take steps to facilitate their return to their homeland along Georgia’s border with Turkey. The framework document, adopted at the meeting in The Hague aims to defuse tensions before they spill over into confrontation.
This report is one of a series of special reports by the Forced Migration Projects. It is based on a mission of inquiry by Justin Burke, editorial manager of the Forced Migration Projects, in April and May 1998. Photographs depicting the situation of the Meskhetian Turks were taken by Michael Samojeden, who accompanied Mr. Burke. Editorial assistance was provided by Elizabeth Archangeli and Bishupal Limbu. Special thanks go to Paata Zakareishvili, a Forced Migrations Project consultant in Tbilisi, for logistical support.
Messrs. Burke and Samojeden travelled from April 20 to May 11, 1998, throughout Georgia, including the Meskhetia region itself, and Azerbaijan. In addition, Mr. Burke visited Uzbekistan in February, 1998. A list of persons quoted in the report and the principal sources of literature consulted appear as appendices to the report.
This report is designed to assist those working on the complex set of challenges affecting minority rights and forced displacement in the region. Progress in solving the Meskhetian Turk issue would serve as a valuable precedent for addressing the problems of national minorities in the former Soviet Union. The target audience includes a wide variety of policymakers and policy implementers in the international community responsible for and concerned with such issues.
Arthur C. Helton
Director, Forced Migration Projects
December 1998
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