19 January 2004, 15:00
Turks-Meskhetians insist on fulfillment of Georgia's commitments to Council of Europe
Akhaltsikhe (Meskhetian) Turks deported in 1944 keep on insisting on their return to the Samtskhe-Javakheti region, which is their native land, and demand that the new Georgian leadership meet commitments on the repatriation of this people undertaken to the Council of Europe more than 4 years ago. "The Turks-Meskhetians' return is an issue of State importance," said Chingiz Neyman-Zade, deputy chair of the Association of Akhaltsikhe (Meskhetian) Turks "Vatan" (Motherland) in Azerbaijan. Until this problem is settled, one can not state that Georgia follows the pass of democracy, he noted.
"The Turks-Meskhetians are tired of explaining that they require no compensation, no restitution of the villages and territories taken from them before, they are not inclined to declare autonomy in Samtskhe-Javakheti, they just want to come back and start normal life at home," said Chingiz Neyman-Zade. According to him, the only thing they need for it is a political decision of the Georgian leadership. Then they would be able to regulate their life themselves with the help of international humanitarian organizations.
Out of 11 peoples subjected to repressions in the USSR, only the Akhaltsikhe Turks have not been able to return to their native land so far, according to Chingiz Neyman-Zade. About 300 thousand Akhaltsikhe Turks live on the territory of the CIS countries today. Up to 80 thousand of them live in Azerbaijan, the other stay in Russia, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. Only no more than 50 out of 300 thousand Turks-Meskhetians actually want to return to the "land of their forefathers", notes the "Vatan" deputy chair.
Source: Prime News Information Agency (Georgia)
