Project: External and Internal Actors in a Social Adaptation and Empowerment of Refugees and IDP-s in Georgia
During the reported period I was engaged
in the study of deported Meskhetians.
My activities entailed consultations, taking interviews, analyses of documents
and survey data, designing and carrying out the survey, visits of Meskhetian
organizations in Azerbaijan and Turkey, attendence of round tables and conferences,
preparing papers for publications.
1. Consultations:
On the issue of repatriation I had consultations in Ministry of
Accomodation and Refugees of Georgia, UNCHR in Tbilisi, IOM in Tbilisi, US
Ambassy, Parliament of Georgia.
2. Interviews:
I conducted a number of
in-depth interviews with inhabitants of the region from were Meskhetins were
deported, repatriates, representatives of NGOs working on the issue, Meskhetian
organizations.
1.
Iordane
Gozalishvili, inhabitant of Vale
2.
Markoz
Gozalishvili, inhabitant of Vale
3.
Jakob
Gozalishvili, member of comission at deportation
4.
Beradze,
repatriate, inhabitant of Mugareti
5.
Mamuka
Khutsishvili, repatriate, inhabitant of Akhaltsikhe
6.
Jalil
Shaganidze, Union of Meskhetian youth
7.
Marat
Baratashvili, Union of Georgian Repatriates, head
8.
Isa Ashrafov,
Khsna Nalchik, chair
10.Misha Mirziashvili, studio Re, director
11. Gulaber Ananiashvili, NGO Mamulishvili deputy chair
14.
Khalid Tashtanov, Azeri branch of NGO VATAN, head
15.
Kemal Beridze, Azeri branch of NGO VATAN K, member of council, head of
foreign affairs department
16.
Ibragim Burkhanov, Azeri branch of NGO VATAN, deputy head
17.
Telli Mamedova, Azeri Society of Ahiska Turkish women SONA, head
18.
Alieva, Azeri Society of Ahiska Turkish women SONA, member of a council
21.Merab
Beradze, rector of Akhaltsikhe branch of Tbilisi State University
22.Gela Kvaratskhelia, Committee of civic integration of the Georgian
Parliament,
head
23.Malkhaz Khoshtaria, deputy of the President of Georgia
representative in
Samtskhe-Javakheti
24. Osman Nuri Mercan,
Journal Chveniani, Istanbul, editor in chief
25. Rustem Ayvaz. Akhiska Turk Society, head
26. Susana Kadirova, Rustem Ayvaz
3. The documents and reports on deported Meskhetians were studied
4. Analyses of survey data:
I analysed data of the study of deported Meskhetians, their neighbours
and local population which I conducted some months preceeding the fellowship.
5. Design and carrying out of the survey
The questionnaire was designed for the study of Meskhetians living
outside Georgia. The survey is already carried out on 300 Meskhetians living in
Azerbaijan. The application for the permission
of research is submitted to the Turkish Embassy in Tbilisi.
6. Visits to Azerbaijan and Turkey
To study the attitude of Meskhetians towards repatriation I visited Meskhetian organizations in Baku
and Istanbul.
7. Attendence of round tables and conferences
I served as facilitator at the round table: „One state, many cultures:
the example of Samtskhe-Javakheti“ on 6-8 October, 2001, Likani, Georgia.
I participated in round table: „The perspectives of repatriation of
Muslim Meskhetians and the problems of Samtskhe-Javakheti region“, on 3-4
November, 2001, Likani, Georgia.
I presented:
„Repatriation and adaptation of
deported Meskhetians: society and state in supra-national context“ at the
conference of International Sociological Association in Oviedo, Spain,
September, 2001.
„Settlement of Muslim Meskhetians and the Attitude of Local Population
towards them“ at the II conference „Problems of Repatriation, Rehabilitation
and Integration of Population, deported in 1944 from Southern Georgia“ Tbilisi,
December, 2001.
8. Preparing papers for publications
„Settlement of Muslim Meskhetians and the Attitude of Local Population
towards them (Together with G.
Tarkhan-Mouravi) was published in „Problems of Repatriation, Rehabilitation
and Integration of Population, deported in 1944 from Southern Georgia“ Tbilisi,
2001. (In Georgian and Russian).
Two papers „Repatriation of Meskhetians to Georgia: Some problems of
adaptation and integration“ (Together with G. Tarkhan-Mouravi) and „Social
capital and adaptation of Mesckhetian repatriates“(Together with G.
Tarkhan-Mouravi) are submitted for
publications.
Also submitted for publication in Georgian, Russian
and English languages is the paper: “Muslim population of
southern Georgia: challenges of repatriation.
Tbilisi
March, 20 2002