Refugees in Iman tent camp fear forced repatriationTimur Aliyev & Ruslan Isayev, North Caucasus – More than 30 families have left the Iman tent camp in the Malgobekski district, Ingushetia, over the last week, being no longer able to take the threats of local policemen and Russian soldiers.
According to refugees, they were proposed to dismantle their tents and leave for Chechnya by December 1, otherwise their tents would be destroyed or burnt. They were also told that electricity and gas supplies to their camp will be cut.
“Ingush policemen used to walk into our tents virtually every five minutes, saying that we’d better leave on our own by December 1, otherwise they would move us out of there by force,” says Malika Eskirkhanova, one of the camp residents.
47-year-old Marem, a refugee from Grozny, is dismantling her tent and preparing to leave for home. "People keep coming to me, requiring our departure. They said that those we will stay will be considered as the henchmen of Chechen guerillas. If you try to save your life from war, why should you be considered a fighter?" she asks.
In contrast to this September, when attempts to dismantle the Iman camp and relocate its residents to the abandoned facilities of the Malgobek radio factory occurred, this time no alternative accommodation has been offered to the refugees. As a result, over 2,000 people can be made homeless. (P/A,T) |
