KChR activists claim authorities' poor attention to deportation victims

Most of the Karachais, who survived the deportation, are maintained by their children, since their pensions are not enough to live on, said Marika Khubieva, the organizer of the "Contrary" Project. The Karachais, who has lost their parents due to the deportation, should receive benefits and other support, said Ibragim Shamanov, Director of the Scientific-Research Institute of the Karachay-Cherkessian Republic (KChR).

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that this year's events to mark the anniversary of Karachais' deportation were limited to laying flowers at the Memorial to Deportation Victims and prayers in mosques or at home. The process of Karachais' rehabilitation has been mothballed, says Ilyas Bogatyryov, President of the "Elbrusoid" Foundation.

The deportation survivors need attention, said Marika Khubieva, the organizer of the "Contrary" Project, dedicated to the 76th anniversary of the deportation of the Karachai people. Her both grandmothers were deported. The deportation survivors had suffered a lot, she said.

The deportation survivors lack authorities' attention, Ibragim Shamanov, a historian, believes. His grandmother, grandfather, two uncles, an aunt and a sister perished in exile.

"Not all the points of the law on repressed nations have been enforced; memory of the deportation victims is not respected at the proper level," he said. Besides, "there are no serious studies on the deportation topic."