Saturday, August 7, 2021
Day of the Repatriant Sends Unwelcome Messages to Circassian Diaspora
Paul Goble
Staunton, August 1 – Today, the Adygey Republic is marking the Day of the Repatriant, something it has done on August 1 since 1998 when the first group of ethnic Circassians returned from Kosovo in the war-torn Balkans. But the day also honors Circassians returning from other countries in Europe and the Middle East.
Unfortunately, the number who have been able to return – about 2,000 in all – is a drop in the bucket compared to the number of Circassians who want to return to the homeland from which their ancestors were expelled in 1864 and who have been blocked by the Russian authorities who fear any mass return would destabilize the North Caucasus. Read more
