Half of the refugees in Georgia still without proper housing

29.01.2025

Article published on the ru.netgazeti.ge website

Following the attempted suicide of a refugee, the Social Justice Centre (SJC) has called on Government authorities to address the issue of providing housing to refugees.

“In recent days, news has been circulating among refugees that the majority of them will most likely remain without adequate housing. Many have been waiting over 30 years and suffered several cycles of rejection by the State which has left them mistrustful and in despair”, said the SJC in a statement.

The SJC said that the relevant State authorities have still not offered any explanation about the suicide incident, or made a statement on issues related to housing provision.

“According to the latest official figures, 295,872 refugees and 95,308 refugee families are currently registered in Georgia. Of these, 54,862 families are now settled in long-term accommodation, while 51,845 are on a waiting list under various housing programmes. Recent data from 2023 also show that more than 500 resettled families are still living in 29 properties that pose a risk to life and health”, said the SJC.

The SJC statement also noted that the policy of social integration and support for refugees is extremely ineffective and fragmented. In addition, a lack of the necessary institutional mechanisms and legislative framework means they don’t have a say in discussions of social issues of importance to them.

The SJC recalls that in 2022 the Georgian authorities fast-tracked the adoption of a law without prior consultation under which children of refugees born after 1 January 2023 will not be eligible for State housing.

The SJC also noted that the extreme form of protest made by a male refugee in the courtyard of the Internally Displaced Persons Agency (IDPA) is not an isolated incident. “In 2022, a 52- year-old refugee committed suicide by jumping from a window of a former sanitorium that housed refugees after years of unsuccessful requests to be relocated from the overcrowded building”.

The SJC statement noted that providing proper housing for refugees is vital for their safety, social security, human rights and dignity. It continues by saying that “32 years after the end of the armed conflict, almost half of displaced people are still without adequate housing, leaving a heavy imprint of poverty, social vulnerability and exclusion”.

“Refugees have been waiting years for the Government to improve their social situation and because the State has left them without the ability to influence policy-making, they are sadly resorting to drastic ways of raising public and Government’s awareness of their plight at the cost of their own lives and health”.

The SJC is calling on the IDPA and the State Care Agency to disclose full details of the attempted suicide incident and to hold public meetings with the refugee community to discuss issues related to resettlement plans, timelines and resources.

On 27 January, a middle-aged man tried to commit suicide by setting himself alight in the courtyard of the IDPA. According to doctors, about 60% of his skin and respiratory tract were affected.

Source: https://ru.netgazeti.ge/66666/