09:52, 8 August 2019

Rights defenders urge Armenian authorities to react to Armenians' discrimination in Sochi

The Sochi Airport. Photo by Nina Zotina, YUGA.ru

Yerevan should condemn the dismissal of workers of Armenian origin from the Sochi Airport and declare this problem at the international level, human rights defenders have stated. Former employees said they had been forced to quit their workplaces because of intrusive control and petty cavils.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the Armenian Diaspora is preparing a complaint to the Prosecutor's Office on behalf of the employees of the Sochi Airport, who complained that they had been fired because of their nationality. In their turn, the airport bosses have excluded the nationality motive for their dismissal.

The appeal of the staff of the Joint-Stock Company (JSC) "Sochi International Airport" was published on July 31 by the Armenian edition "Lragir.am". "Employees with Armenian surnames are being fired in every possible way," the appeal says.

Armenian rights defenders have no leverage to influence the situation in Russia, said Arthur Sakunts, a rights defender and the head of the Vanadzor Office of the Helsinki Civil Assembly.

In his opinion, the only way to raise the problem of Sochi Armenians is to declare it on international platforms.

Grant Mikaelyan, a political analyst, has pointed out that the oppression of Armenians in Southern Russia has long-standing roots. "The number of Armenians in Southern Russia is growing, which means that their economic and political potentials are also growing," he has stated.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 7, 2019 at 11:55 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Svetlana Kravchenko, Tigran Petrosyan

Source: CK correspondents