21 December 2004, 23:24
Chechen refugees in Azerbaijan may hold rallies
Chechen refuges can organize rallies to protest against the indifference of international agencies and Azerbaijan authorities to their problems, representatives of the Chechen refugees in Azerbaijan told the Caucasian Knot correspondent. The refugees demand that the Azerbaijan authorities should stop persecuting them, abducting men, and illegally delivering them to the Russian side. They also accuse the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) of not doing their duties.
Human rights activist Aliovsat Aliyev thinks that "only displaced persons from Chechnya are subjected to discrimination when getting refugee status." "Azerbaijan doesn't protect the rights they have as refugees, and they are deprived of any rights. They receive material aid neither from the Azerbaijan state nor from the UNHCR," the human rights activist said.
The press service of the UNHCR office in Azerbaijan has announced that any person considering himself or herself a refuge can apply to this organization to fix this status. "Nationality doesn't have any significance in this situation," a representative of the press service said.
Author: Zaur Rasulzade, CK correspondent
