23:26, 9 December 2003

Stavropol lawyers will learn to protect rights of refugees and displace persons

The international conference "Problems of Refugees and Displaced Persons in North Caucasus" was held in Stavropol on December 5. It was initiated by the Stavropol State University and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) jointly with the Commissioner for Human Rights in Stavropol Territory and the Russian Children's Fund.

Migration processes are widely developed in Stavropol Territory owing to its geopolitical location. According to the regional government, over 650 thousand people have arrived in the region for the last 15 years. About 80 thousands of them have been granted displaced person status. Most of these people are in a difficult financial position. They often do not have a place of permanent residence and a job and do not receive help from the state because of their legal ignorance. This is why the Stavropol State University has already introduced subjects on ethnosocial problems into its curriculum. There is also a proposal to introduce the course "Rights of Refugees (Migrants)" into the curriculum.

Author: Svetlana Biryukova, CK correspondent

Source: Caucasian Knot