TBLISI, July 27 (RIA Novosti) - Discrimination against minorities in Georgia is commonplace, according to new report called "Ethnic Minorities in Georgia", prepared recently by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), an organization based in France.
The report says minorities are migrating from Georgia to other countries, and calls for special programs to be introduced for teaching the Georgian language, without which ethnic minorities are vulnerable to discrimination.
A research group has been comparing populations of ethnic minorities in Georgia between 1989 and 2005, said Ucha Nanuashvili, head of Georgian NGO Human Rights Information and Documentation Center.
In 1989, there were 308,000 Azerbaijanis living in Georgia vs. 284,000 today, 437,000 Armenians vs. 249,000, 341,000 Russians vs. 68,000, 52,000 Ukrainians vs. 7,000, and 15,000 Greeks vs. 15,000, Nanuashvili said at a press conference Wednesday, citing the report.
The FIDH has become concerned with Georgia due to the number of citizens leaving the country and seeking asylum in western European countries.
Nanuashvili said the Georgian government has assumed responsibility for ratifying the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The FIDH report has already been sent to all relevant state departments.
The human rights campaigner says that based on the report's findings, a national strategy should be developed to solve the problem.
