Forum Views ()
Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Georgia refugees adapt to life in settlement camps
Yahoo!
My Yahoo!
Mail
Yahoo! Search
Search:
Sign InNew User? Sign Up
News Home -
Help
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Asia Pacific
World
Search
Search:
Georgia refugees adapt to life in settlement camps
AFP - Monday, August 3
TSEROVANI/KHURVALETI, Georgia (AFP) - - Often used as a showcase for Georgia's efforts to help the thousands of people who fled South Ossetia after last August's Georgia-Russia war, the Tserovani settlement hums with the sounds of construction as builders put up new schools, shops and administrative buildings.
ADVERTISEMENT
Only 35 kilometres (22 miles) apart, the refugee settlements of Tserovani and Khurvaleti along Georgia's border with the rebel South Ossetia region could hardly be more different.
Tserovani, a wide expanse of row housing that is home to 2,000 families, is a model development, its homes solidly built and equipped with running water, electricity and natural gas.
"The conditions are pretty good, the government has done a lot to help us," said Medea Kenkadze, a 48-year-old school teacher who fled to the settlement with her family from the Akhalgori region in South Ossetia.
Khurvaleti, however, is a world apart. There, about 140 families live in deplorable conditions, without running water or gas, the smell of outdoor toilets pervading the settlement.
Less than a year old, the homes in Khurvaleti are already falling apart, huge cracks running along the sides and chunks of concrete breaking off. The aluminium roofs leak when it rains. There are no schools or shops.
"It's terrible here and it was worse in the winter," said Khurvaleti resident Nino Javakhishvili, 68, as she sat on a bench in the mud-filled front yard of her home. "There's no water, there's no gas, and there's no work for the men. We've been abandoned."
In the year since the war, experts say Georgia's record on assisting those who fled their homes is mixed.
Many have praised Georgia's government for moving quickly to build homes and get financial and food programmes off the ground. But critics say conditions in some settlements are intolerable and many refugees have been left behind.
Georgia's minister for refugees, Koba Subeliani, said the government is doing the best it can.
"Refugees' homes are not terribly pleasant, but we managed to provide people with homes in an extremely short period after the war. There were no refugees living in tents within two-and-a-half months after the war," he said.
Tens of thousands of Georgians fled their homes in and around South Ossetia and another rebel region, Abkhazia, during the war, which saw Russian troops pour into Georgia to repel a Georgian military attempt to retake South Ossetia.
Many returned home after Russia withdrew to within the rebel regions in October, but about 25,000 people, mostly ethnic Georgians from within South Ossetia, were unable to return.
With the help of 4.5 billion dollars in foreign aid pledged after the war, the government quickly built a string of settlements for refugees near the border with South Ossetia.
The authorities and international agencies meet their basic needs for foodstuffs and provide small amounts of financial assistance.
"Overall, the government has met its main obligations toward the refugees... but there are also a lot of shortcomings," said Natia Mosashvili, an activist with Georgia's Young Lawyers Association, which has been working with refugees.
Georgian media have also reported some cases of refugees being forced to live in the settlements against their will, with the government refusing to provide them with assistance otherwise.
Regardless of their living conditions, refugees say the biggest hardship is not knowing if they will ever be able to return to their homes.
"It's not so bad for me, I'm an old man," said 67-year-old Tserovani resident Otari Gviniashvili.
"But what about those young people?" he asked, pointing to a group of children playing in the settlement. "What do they have to look forward to growing up here? The government gives them a home and some food and some money. It's a life, but it is not really living."
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Sign in to recommend this article »
0 users recommend
Related Articles: Entertainment & Lifestyle
'Funny People' has last laugh at box-office top spotAFP - Monday, August 3
Pianist plays newly discovered Mozart piecesAFP - Monday, August 3
Researchers unveil Mozart piano pieces in AustriaAP - Monday, August 3
Spielberg hops onto update of rabbit tale 'Harvey'AP - Monday, August 3
Leonard Cohen's Israel concert sells out in a dayAP - Monday, August 3
Enlarge Photo
A Georgian man sells tomatos in refugee settlement of Tserovani not far from Gori. Often used as a showcase for Georgia's efforts to help the thousands of people who fled South Ossetia after last August's Georgia-Russia war, the Tserovani settlement hums with the sounds of construction as builders put up new schools, shops and administrative buildings.
Most Popular – Entertainment
Viewed
Organic food not healthier, says British study
Comets probably won't cause the end of life as we know it: study
Beer flows as Obama tries to cool down a hot furor
Madonna writes of her spiritual awakening
Swine flu: rich nations' spending spurs ethics row
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy
- Terms of Service
- Community
- Intellectual Property Rights Policy
- Help
Other News on Monday, 3 August 2009 Iraqi PM, Kurd president meet over land, oil feud
China's Cosplay craze blurs fantasy and reality
Khatami condemns Iran's "show trial" of reformists
Officials see US economic growth in 2nd half
Iraqi PM, Kurd president meet over land, oil feud
| International
|
Iraq's Tareq Aziz gets 7 years jail in Kurds case
Iran hardliners accuse opposition of 'treason'
End of US economic crisis 'getting very close'
Latest in string of west Iraq bombings kills six
Israel opens West Bank road to Palestinian traffic
Afghan attacks kill five Western soldiers
China energy efficiency 'improves in first half'
China bans bad breath in space: report
Obama officials eye more jobless aid, weigh taxes
N.Korea agrees to streamline border crossing
Teller Nabs Would-Be Robber, Gets Fired
US aviator shot down in Iraq in 1991 identified
Federal Agents Seize Skin Care Products
LaGuardia terminal evacuated in NYC, 1 in custody
Wis. jury: Father guilty in prayer death case
Warship christened at Maine shipyard for NY Marine
Computer glitch downs JAL's domestic flights
No joke: Funny People falls flat at box office
| Entertainment
|
US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary
No joke: "Funny People" falls flat at box office
Newly discovered Mozart works played in Austria
US commander weighs more troops in Afghan war
IEA official warns of shrinking oil supplies: report
Iran leader approves Ahmadinejad presidency: TV
| International
|
Shares of smartphone maker HTC plunge on outlook
Virgin Media considers UK secondary listing: report
Key reformist figures on trial in Iran
Bomb kills 12, wounds 26 in west Afghanistan
| International
|
Ford records rare uptick in monthly sales: report
Microsoft to ship IE with Windows 7 in Europe
Conservative seeks trials for Iran bloodshed
50 Palestinians evicted from their Jerusalem homes
GIs, out of Iraq cities, have time on their hands
Five foreign troops killed in Afghanistan
| International
|
China says Uighur leader's children condemn mother
| International
|
Myanmar activist awarded Asia's Nobel prize
| International
|
Pentagon eyes accelerated "bunker buster" bomb
Budget woes, recession challenge day-labor centers
Pair of longtime Mich. fast-food workers retire
Gulf War pilot's remains found in Iraq desert
Wal-Mart worker bitten by accused shoplifter
Seattle bank teller chases robber, loses job
King salmon vanishing in Alaska, smokehouses empty
Aryan Nations gone, but stain remains in Idaho
S.Korea c.bank to recover all FX loans to banks
Korea Hot Stocks
Poverty saps local interest in Suu Kyi trial
RPT-UPDATE 1-S.Korea July exports down 20 pct, less than f'cast
S.Korean bonds steady; caution after upbeat data
New Zealand voter economic confidence soars-poll
Seoul shares open firm helped by auto, tech issues
Georgia refugees adapt to life in settlement camps
The serious side of the Funny People aftermath
| Entertainment
|
'Funny People' has last laugh at box-office top spot
Pianist plays newly discovered Mozart pieces
Researchers unveil Mozart piano pieces in Austria
Spielberg hops onto update of rabbit tale 'Harvey'
Leonard Cohen's Israel concert sells out in a day
Mark Wahlberg marries girlfriend Rhea Durham
Iran leader endorses Ahmadinejad but rivals absent
Canada extradites arms dealer to Germany
Iran leader approves Ahmadinejad's second term
| International
|
Panasonic announces Q1 net loss of 560 mln dlrs
HSBC says profit slumps 57% as bad debts leap
Afghan bomb blast kills 12 ahead of vote
Historic criminal trials go online
Afghan city bombing kills 12: police
Barclays Bank first-half profits soar by 10%
China seals off town after plague kills two
| International
|
American with cold misses ill-fated hike into Iran
Scientists find cannabis trigger for forgetfulness
Officials see US economic growth in 2nd half
Pakistan court adjourns leaving Lashkar founder free
| International
|
Criticism grows over Colombia's U.S. military plan
| International
|
Israel's Lieberman says will quit if indicted
| International
|
Somali pirates get $2.7 million ransom for German ship
| International
|
Qaeda tells Obama conditional truce offer stands
| International
|
WITNESS: Aquino's people power swept up reporters, too
| International
|
Nigerians count cost after uprising by Islamic sect
| International
|
Guantanamo inmates may move to special jail: report
Obama walks Russia-Georgia tightrope
Google CEO Schmidt to quit Apple board
| Technology
|
Japan eyes e-politics as political rivalry grows
| Technology
|
Microsoft's Bing gains another 1 percent of U.S. search
| Technology
|
LA tries test to find kids likely to join gangs
Indonesia budget sees 5.0 pct growth next year
SKorean July inflation at nine-year low
Seoul shares end firm helped by auto, tire issues
China manufacturing at 12-month high, index shows
Indonesia's drug fight pushes prison AIDS explosion
No sign of missing plane in Indonesia: official
Private donors help Versailles recover its splendor
Plane carrying 16 disappears over Indonesia
Plane carrying 16 disappears over Indonesian Papua
Billboard singles reviews: Brad Paisley, Jay-Z
| Entertainment
|
Court Orders Graduate Student To Pay Nearly $700,000 For Downloading Just 30 Songs Illegally
Explosive Stolen From Washington State Port, Feds Investigating
Teller Nabs Would-Be Robber, Gets Fired
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights