Russian authorities demolish Romany homes in Tatarstan
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 3 August 2017 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Russian authorities demolish Romany homes in Tatarstan, 3 August 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5a9fb777a.html [accessed 7 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
August 03, 2017 15:04 GMT
RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service
AISHA, Russia – Authorities in the Russian Republic of Tatarstan have demolished houses belonging to the Romany minority, saying they were built illegally.
Riot police with dogs were present as three private houses belonging to local Romany families were razed in the village of Aisha on August 3.
A court in Tatarstan ruled on March 16 that five private houses in Aisha must be demolished as they had been built without permission.
Romany families promised to take apart the houses by August 3 and had removed three by the deadline.
But the last two houses were demolished by authorities on August 3, an action that the Romany community is now being charged 800,000 rubles ($13,200) for.
Andrei Suchkov of the Law Zone human rights organization, which represents Roma's rights, told RFE/RL that the officials had no right to demolish the houses with heavy machinery as it also destroyed construction materials that could be used by the homeowners to build new houses.
In 2016, authorities in Russia's western Tula region destroyed some 500 houses belonging to Roma, saying they were illegally built.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
