Azerbaijan issues $1.6B to tackle problems of refugees, IDPs

/By Azernews/

By Nigar Abbasova

The government of Azerbaijan has so far allocated more than 2.5 billion manats ($1.6 billion) for solving refugee problem in the country.

Ali Hasanov, the deputy prime minister, head of the State Committee on Affairs of Refugees and IDPs has announced about this while addressing the event dedicated to the World Refugee Day.

Noting that the problem of refugees and IDPs is one of the problems interesting and worrying the whole world, he reminded that Azerbaijan is facing this problem for more than 20 years.

“The number of refugees and displaced persons in Azerbaijan amounts to more than a billion people. The country implements state programs on the improvement of the social and living conditions of refugees and displaced persons,” he said.

Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms. Every 8th citizen in Azerbaijan is a refugee as a result of the Armenian aggression. Out of more than 9.6 million population, 1.2 million are refugees and IDPs in their native land.

The Nagorno-Karabakh war, which flared up in the late 1980s due to Armenia's territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor, left 700,000 civilians from Nagorno-Karabakh and the regions adjoining it, as well as the regions bordering Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, without homes.

Moreover, 250,000 Azerbaijanis were expelled from Armenia and became refugees due to Armenia's ethnic cleansing policy after the emergence of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Azerbaijan.

Hasanov further added new conflicts lead to the sharpening of the problem of displaced persons. “Unfortunately, the number of refugees and displaced persons in the world currently amounts to 60 million. Certain documents have already been developed to solve the problem but this is insufficient,” he added.

Despite Azerbaijan’s continues efforts and hard works to deal with the problem, there is still refugees and IDPs that are in need of better conditions.

More than 400, 000 internally displaced people continue to live in difficult conditions and due to the size and continuation of problem of IDPs in the country; Azerbaijan needs support of international organizations and donors.

The official further added that the state continues its efforts for the release of hostages Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev taken hostage by Armenian militaries.

Noting that the head of state tackles the issue personally, Hasanov said the president has repeatedly raised the issue of release of Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev during meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin

Hasanov has voiced a hope that the issue will also be considered during today’s meeting of the two presidents.

Armenian forces killed an Azerbaijani, Hasan Hasanov, and detained Guliyev and Asgarov while they were attempting to visit the graves of their relatives in July 2014.

Guliyev and Asgarov have been judged illegally by the unrecognized courts of a separatist regime in occupied Nagorno-Karabakh. Following an expedited “judicial process" in December 2015, Asgarov was sentenced to life imprisonment and Guliyev to 22 years.