Refugees from Gadrut complain about Armenian authorities' indifference to their problems

Armenian authorities refuse to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent state, which casts doubt on its future existence; at the same time, they offer refugees to return to Karabakh, the NGO "In the Name of Gadrut" has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh are periodically holding protests in Yerevan, where they demand from Armenian authorities to provide them with the refugee status and help, in particular, with their housing problems.

Until now, Armenian authorities have not yet provided any help to the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh, who had been forced to leave their homes during the hostilities in the fall of 2020 in the conflict zone, Levon Airyan, the head of the above NGO "In the name of Gadrut", has stated. Authorities recommend refugees to return to Nagorno-Karabakh, but without the status of an independent state, the latter has no future, he said adding that besides, in Artsakh there are problems with the availability of housing, including the rental facilities.

On February 4, migrants from Gadrut and Shushi (the Azerbaijani name is Shusha, – note of the "Caucasian Knot") held a protest action near the representative office of Nagorno-Karabakh in Yerevan, where they demanded to be granted the refugee status and financial help for renting housing and paying for utilities. More than 50 people took part in the action, the organizers assert. An official of the mission went out to the protesters and assured them that he would convey their demands to the government of Nagorno-Karabakh, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 5, 2022 at 12:12 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.