The Azerbaijani website, Vesti.az has reported that the number of Chechen refugees in Azerbaijan is decreasing because of inhumane living conditions.

According to the article, at the moment 1,028 Chechen refugees have been granted refugee status in Azerbaijan, and this year, 4 new applications were submitted. However, these 4 cases are still pending. Most of the Chechen refugees are children.

Gulcin Seyidova, an employee of UNHCR’s legal department in Azerbaijan confirmed that the number of Chechen refugees in Azerbaijan has decreased, but she pointed out that it is hard to tell the exact numbers of those refused asylum. However, according to her knowledge, since August of 2010, at least 172 Chechen refugees left Azerbaijan to go to a third country.

She noted that the monthly assistance for a refugee is 40 Azerbaijan New Manat (AZN), which is around 36 Euros. If there is more than one person, then they add 20 AZN for each one. “We know that this money doesn’t help solve any problems, but we don’t have a big budget,” said Seyidova.

Ramzan Mollayev, the head of the Council of Chechen Refugees in Azerbaijan, said that most of the Chechen refugees are women and children.

“It makes no sense to stay in Azerbaijan. We have no right to get an education, no right to work, and we don’t have the opportunity for integration into the society. It is a sovereign country. They accepted us, they provided shelter for us. Thank you for all this. However, we don’t have any more strength to endure this poverty and injustice. I have lost 11 years of my life here,” said Mollayev.

*Text was translated by Waynakh Online and edited by Michael Capobianco