Residents of the North Caucasus have spoken out against the law on repatriation, which requires knowledge of the Russian language
More than 80 human rights defenders, activists, and cultural figures from Adygea, Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Karachay-Cherkessia have sent an appeal to the President of the Russian Federation. They are asking not to adopt the law "On Repatriation to the Russian Federation", since it requires knowledge of the Russian language for potential repatriates from foreign countries to Russia and infringes on their rights.
"In the countries where compatriots live, there are no conditions for systematic study of the Russian language, and therefore it is advisable to organize training after returning to their homeland, as has already happened in the case of Circassians from Kosovo and Syria. It would be fair for compatriots who speak any of the state languages of a subject of the Russian Federation to be granted the right to repatriation. Otherwise, we are talking about discrimination on the basis of nationality, violating the rights of peoples to self-determination," the appeal says.
Earlier, Circassian diaspora activists called on the Russian authorities to abandon the requirement for mandatory knowledge of the Russian language, as stipulated in the bill on repatriation. They claim that this contradicts the Constitution of the Russian Federation and threatens the federal structure of the country.
