International Crisis Group Reports on Armenian, Azeri Minorities

Despite some steps undertaken by the Georgian government to improve the lives of minorities, it has made little progress towards integrating the Armenians and Azeris who constitute over 12% of the population, the Belgium-based International Crisis Group said in a report on the situation of the two minorities in Georgia.

The report says that while there is no risk of the situations becoming threats to the state?s territorial integrity, like S.Ossetia or Abkhazia, tensions are evident in the regions of Samtskhe-Javakheti and Kvemo Kartli, where the Armenian and Azeri minorities, respectively, predominantly live.

?Tbilisi needs to pay more attention to minority rights, including use of second languages, if it is to avoid further conflict,? the report says.

International Crisis Group outlined the inability to speak the state language as ?the minorities? biggest problem.?

The report notes that with donor support, Georgia has invested in road and infrastructure rehabilitation in minority regions; created a ministry for civic integration; established a public administration institute to train minorities; and ratified the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

?But overall the priority has been to assert national unity over minority protection.?

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