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STRANGE ROOF OVER MY HEAD

The problem of housing for refugees from Azerbaijan remains the most essential among all the problems relating to them. For more than 15 years over 10 thousand refugee-families have been living in boarding houses, boarding-schools, hotels, in the hope of finally obtain their own home. In this light during his pre-election campaign President Robert Kocharyan's made a hope-inspiring statement providing for the solution to the problem within three years, in a way similar to that in the earthquake zone

The Department for Migration and Refugees, RA Government, was instructated the assignment to promptly elaborate a relevant program and to submit it for the Government's approval, which has been done rather quickly. The group of refugees which is really in a horrifying condition, i.e. in a dire need for housing, has been selected under the program. The program is based on the mechanism of purchasing housing at the the real estate market for certificates cashed from the specialized funds that has been tested in the earthquake zone. The Deputy Chief of the Department for Migration and Refugees David Hakopyan is optimistic about this governmental priority medium-term program that is under consideration, as he believes the problem of 3.5 thousand out of 10 thousand refugee-families in need of housing will be solved within next 3 years. 17 million dollars will be required for the program implementation, which will be possible due to state budget allocations and financial assistance of international donors, namely, UNHCR Armenia and the Norwegian Council on refugee affairs.

At this point the former UNHCR representative Lloyd Deykin has expressed a doubt about the opportunity of financial means prompt attraction. Though he welcomed the Government's desire to settle the refugees' housing problem, he disproved (disavowed) the information about co-financing to the program. L.Deykin emphasized, that UNHCR basic strategy of resolving the problem is construction and reconstruction of housing facilities. L.Deykin has emphasized, that donors who wish to finance this program, will necessarily concentrate their attention to its budgetary part, and that they should be sure the program is really accessible, effective and transparent. In his opinion, the program should be more detailed, precisely specifying families selection criteria on the families structure basis. The beneficiary families are given certificates for a certain amount. The solution to the housing problem, for example, for a 70 year-old woman who lives alone cannot be the same as for a young growing family consisting of 2-3 members. The former head of Armenian UNHCR office noted if the program implementation mechanisms prove effective their office will possibly share in financing this housing programme. For potential donors the fact that the program will involve UNHCR, - the official international organization allocating means for improvement of housing, - becomes reliability guarantee. In any case, even such a way of resolving the refugees housing problem is in itself positive, stated Lloyd Dakin.

However, a year has passed, but refugees their hopes are still far from coming true - their problems were not included in the list of Armenia priority tasks. Moreover, refugees are more and more often faced with the threat of losing their temporary shelters. Privatization of premises which veils the destiny of the refugees residing there has become a widespread phenomenon during the last few years. New owners of boarding houses thirsting for immediate profit are impatient. Judicial bodies wherewith they lodge claims for tenants' eviction, return verdicts in favour of the new owners. And thus no laws are broken as under privatization contracts the new owners do not have any commitments to refugees. Thus, the trial of the case on the eviction of refugees from the "Swallow" boarding house has been lasting for several years. The destiny of other refugees living in #123 Amaranotsain street has not even evoked public response as the sale and purchase contract did not say anything about the future of the people residing there. The problem has simply been shifted on the Government's shoulders. The same way one of the hostels in #3 Sebastiya street was recently sold. The buyer knew nothing about refugees occupying the building. And it was only due to prompt intervention of the Department of Migration and Refugees, which addressed a letter to the prime minister, that an item was included in the contract according to which refugees could only be evicted after an alternative housing was purchased for them. Otherwise, the court would have returned an eviction verdict.

A strange situation is developing, when new proprietors who do not have to bear extra financial charges to refugees and are almost always the gainers. As a rule, courts oblige the Department of Migration and Refugees, RA Government, to deal with the problem of further settlement of the evicted refugees. Head of the Department Gagik Yeganyan has repeatedly stated that his department has no vacant premises at its disposal, and is unabler to provide refugees with either alternative or permanent housing. A request to the Government for the allocation of 130,000 USD from the reserve fund necessary for the settlement for the longlasting dispute over the "Swallow" boarding house was not crowned with success. The Ministry of Finance and Economy replied that "the means from the reserve fund will be used for solving other urgent problems of the country".

Considering the policy of refugees' integration and naturalization proclaimed by the Armenian Government, it was, at least, strange that in January, 2000 the Government should reverse its decision #255 of 1992 as no longer topical. The decision prohibited eviction of refugees from any premises occupied by them without providing them with an alternative housing, except when it was made under findings of the court. It is only the Government's regulation #588 of 29 November, 1992 that remaines valid. The regulation prohibits the local authorities (city soviets and district soviets!-author's comment) from evicting refugees from the premises under their jurisdiction. Nowadays the local authorities - the city administration and municipalities - are not succecors of the former bodies and the Government's regulation is not applied to them! On the all above-stated examples are the result of this decision made in the absence of any law that would protect the refugees' rights in the induvidual including the privatization of premises occupied by refugees. "The Government deals with each individual case", stated Petros Agababyan, lawyer of the Department of Migration and Refugees.

What are the criteria the Government is guided by in each induvidual case - to include or not an item on refugees in the purchase-and-sale contracts - is the thing known to the Government alone. As regards the very first tranche under the above-mentioned housing program, the Governments is only going to allocate the funds in 2006, the last year of its implementation! In view of the Government-proclaimed the refugees integration policy, this approach to refugees' problems can at least be called declarative and discrediting many successful undertakings in this sphere. The data on the naturalized refugees speak for themselves. In 2001 - 2002 when the first resolute statements on the necessity of a prompt resolution of refugees' problems were made, more than 15,000 persons became Armenian citizens annually. Last year, about 8,000 persons were naturalized - the limit of trust in promises was once again exhausted. An exceptional was the spring of 2003, when the election campaign was held and the President voiced the promise to solve the refugees' housing problem within the next few years.

Yet there are also other invisible obstacles, some kind of "delayed action mines" which can frustrate the program's implementation in the future when at last both donors and budgetary funds are found. Thus, the terms of program's implementation during a certain period encounter obstacles as well. Today the cost of the program, as it was calculated by the Department of Migration and Refugees in view of the official prices for real estate provided for in the budget, has almost increased by 1mln. USD, and reached 18mln. USD. Simple arithmetic calculation shows that on the average 6-7 thousand USD is necessary for each family. Today in the market it is practically impossible to get even a 1-roomed apartment for this money. And in view of dynamics of prices on apartments, which is approximately 1.2 per cent a month, the state budget will prove unable to finance further implementation of the housing program in 3 years. As a result, hundreds of refugee families will not be able to receive housing certificates.

While the housing programme elaborated within the Department of Migration and Refugees is under the Government's consideration, the experts should once more calculate the figures and simultaneously the terms of its realization. The figures mean living people, their crippled fate.

And it is very difficult for refugees to believe in good intentions of the Government, which thinks that people who have been huddling in temporary barracks for already 16 years can wait for some more years. 2006 is a year of launching the medium-term housing program for only 3,500 of more than 10,000 refugee families in need of housing. Will they wait until their turn eventually comes?

Time passes. Time for faith and hopes.

Oksana Musaelyan , ARMINFO, 28 June, 2004