In Tbilisi, roundtable discusses protection of Russians' rights in Georgia

A "round table", held in Tbilisi, discussed issues of monitoring observance of rights and lawful interests of Russian compatriots in Georgia, the problems of translation of Georgian laws to Russian language, and the situation with reduction of number of schools, teaching in Russian.

On June 28, the roundtable entitled "Human Rights Issues of Russian Compatriots in Georgia", organized by the Union of Russian Compatriots in Georgia "Motherland", was held at the Tbilisi international press centre of the RIA "Novosti".

The event was attended by Valery Svarchuk, President of the NGO "Motherland", Alla Bezhentseva, a representative of the NGO "Union of Russian Women", heads of branches of the organization "Motherland" from Batumi, Dmanisi, Rustavi, Poti, and other cities, and lawyers of the NGO, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

Alla Bezhentseva, the representative of the organization "Union of Russian Women" of Georgia, stated that in Georgia, like in many other countries, protection of the minority rights is taken under the care of international organizations, office of the Ombudsman, and a number of NGOs.

According to Alla Bezhentseva, starting from January 1, 2012, in Russia, the Foundation to support and protect the rights of compatriots, living abroad, was officially launched. She highlighted the main directions, in which the Foundation would operate and allocate grants.

"We will carry out monitoring of observance of rights and lawful interests of Russian compatriots in Georgia," Alla Bezhentseva stated. She has added that the monitoring will give an objective picture of the situation with the Russian language and will show the status of schools, teaching in Russian in Georgia.

"Besides, legal consultations at organizations of Russian compatriots in Georgia should also be opened," Alla Bezhentseva stated.

According Alla Bezhentseva, the position of the Russian Diaspora in Georgia should be strengthened, and its involvement in protecting the rights of compatriots should be intensified.

In his turn, Valery Svarchuk, President of the Union of compatriots in Georgia "Motherland", has emphasized that the work of the Diaspora in Georgia is not very active.

"We should be able to defend our rights; however, at the same time, we should not forget the country, in which we live. And, of course, great emphasis should be placed on integration into Georgian society. Throughout last 25 years, a huge migration of Russians to Russia or abroad can be observed. Out of 450,000 Russians, who lived in Georgia, only about 40,000 Russians remain, and they often feel not very comfortable," Valery Svarchuk stated.

"According to statistics, presented by the Ministry of Education, entire Georgia has only about 60 Russian schools. However, in reality, their number is much smaller, not more than 30. Since at schools, where senior schoolchildren complete their education, no admission to the primary forms will be held anymore," Valery Svarchuk said.

In her turn, Marina Bapunashvili, a lawyer from the Legal Centre at the NGO "Motherland", has stated that the Centre exists for about 3 years, and, during this year, it tries to hold consultations.

"At present, with funding from the Foundation, we will be able to do the work more effectively. We conduct consultations for free; however, when it comes to investigation and trial, then money is needed," the lawyer said.

According to Marina Bapunashvili, one of the difficulties in protecting the rights of Russian compatriots is in the fact that the Georgian laws and regulations have not been translated to Russian language.

Furthermore, according to the lawyer, in the nearest future, the website will be created, on which everyone will be able to get acquainted with the work of the Centre.

The idea of establishment of human rights centres in the regions was also supported by present representatives of branches of the NGO "Homeland" in Georgia.