Situation of displaced persons in Ingushetia

Situation of displaced persons in Ingushetia

Doc. 7599

28 June 1996

MOTION FOR A RECOMMENDATION

presented by Mr. GROSS and others

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only the members who have signed it

1.         The Assembly is extremely concerned by the very serious humanitarian situation of displaced persons in the Republic of Ingushetia (Russian Federation).

2.         Of the two waves of displaced persons from neighbouring regions, the Republic of Ingushetia took in about 30,000 people from North Ossetia in 1992 and about 60,000 from Chechnya in 1995. The population of the Republic of Ingushetia, estimated at 270,000, has increased by a third as a result. Needless to say, the autonomous Republic is quite unable to cope with all these people.

3.         Despite the efforts of the authorities and humanitarian organisations to provide assistance, these people have been living - some of them for over 4 years - in a state of extreme deprivation.

4.         The best solution would be for them to return home, and those who so wish should be allowed to do so. It seems however that, despite the steps taken by the Russian authorities, people are not returning to North Ossetia as quickly as had been hoped.

5.         The Assembly welcomes the regional conference on the problems of refugees and displaced persons and other people who have been involuntarily displaced and sent back to countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States and neighbouring countries and hopes that displaced persons in the Ingush Republic will benefit from the programmes implemented as a follow-up to this conference.

6.         The Assembly therefore recommends that the Committee of Ministers:

            - ask the Government of the Russian Federation to step up, with the co-operation of governmental and non-governmental humanitarian organisations, assistance to displaced persons in the Ingush Republic and to do everything possible to allow them to return as soon as possible;

            - request the member states to provide the Government of the Russian Federation and humanitarian organisations on the spot with financial and technical assistance so that these objectives can be achieved.

Signed[1]:

Guirado, Spain, SOC

van den Bos, Netherlands, LDR

Filimonov, Russia, UEL

Volodin, Russia, UEL

Gross, Switzerland, SOC

Fehr, Switzerland, LDR

Laakso, Finland, UEL

Din�er, Turkey, SOC

Feric, Romania, EPP

Golu, Romania, SOC

Ghesqui�re, Belgium, EPP

Aguiar, Portugal, LDR

[1]        SOC : Socialist Group

            EPP : Group of the European People's Party

            EDG : European Democratic Group

            LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers Group

            UEL : Group of the Unified European Left