Forced Migrants in Russia: An Analysis of Russian Law from a Human Rights Perspective

Abstract

This paper describes the "forced return" of Russian and Russian-speaking peoples in the new "Republics" to Russia as a consequence of the collapse of the USSR. Although these migrations bear all the earmarks of a refugee displacement, they do not fall within the legitimate definitions of forced migration. Consequently, these individuals are forced to endure all the trauma of displacement without recourse to the normative international or human rights remedies. The author suggests that two new categories, "returnees" and "returning migrants" be delineated to meet the needs of these individuals. Several examples of forced return are described in the paper to clarify the parameters of the problem and illustrate the consequences.