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ARMENIA: RUSSIA PUTS SQUEEZE ON MIGRANT WORKERS
EurasiaNet.org
Feb 24 2014
February 24, 2014 - 2:21pm, by Marianna Grigoryan
Armenia's four competitors at the Sochi Winter Olympics didn't come
close to winning a medal. But a joke making the rounds in Yerevan
goes that since the athletes made it into Russia, they should at
least stick around and look for work.
Russia has long been a magnet for Armenian migrant laborers. But under
new Russian regulations that came into force on January 1, Armenians
and other foreigners who lack long-term visas can stay in Russia for
only three months before they must leave the country for another 90
days. They must remain in their home country for the same amount of
time. Violators are subject to a three-year ban on entering Russia;
those who have already been deported face a five-year ban.
Many Armenians expected they would be exempt from the new Russian
rules, given Yerevan's decision last September to join a Moscow-led
Customs Union along with Belarus and Kazakhstan. But it hasn't worked
out that way, and many are distraught.
After agreeing to join the Customs Union, the Armenian government
"told us everything would be fine, but we got into trouble," complained
55-year-old labor migrant Vanik Smbatian, who has worked on Russian
construction sites for the past 20 years to support his family. "The
new law came as a beautiful surprise, like the Olympic Games, and
simply spoiled our lives."
Ninety days is not enough time to find a job in Armenia and earn
money for a $350-$400 plane ticket back to Russia, migrants contend.
Unofficial estimates of unemployment in Armenia soar far into the
double-digits, while nearly a third of its population of roughly 3
million people lives under the poverty line.
While high unemployment has long been a problem, government data
suggests that increasingly Armenians are dependent on finding jobs
in Russia - in particular in construction or in service-sector jobs
-- to make ends meet. According to the Central Bank of Armenia,
remittances from Russia account for 84.6 percent of the overall $942
million transferred to Armenia during the first two quarters of 2013,
the latest period for which data is available. The amount marks a
12-percent increase from the same period in 2012.
Similarly, according to Russia's Federal Migration Service, 20 percent
more Armenians traveled to Russia in 2013 (roughly 670,000) than in
2012. The National Statistical Service of Armenia estimates that 90
percent of those who travel to Russia go to find work there.
With reduced access to Russian jobs, many Armenian families may find
themselves with no adequate means of support, local experts warn.
Against this backdrop, many want to know why Russia isn't willing
to give Armenian migrants a break. Officials in Moscow, however,
aren't offering any insight into their decision-making process.
At a February 14 news conference, Svetlana Stepanova, the migration
policy officer at the Russian Embassy in Yerevan, dodged questions
related to Armenia and the Customs Union. She also declined to explain
why similar labor restrictions do not apply to citizens of fellow
prospective Union members Belarus and Kazakhstan. "You are trying to
interfere with politics again. I do not know if an exception will be
made for Armenia or not," Stepanova told journalists.
Stepanova stressed that Armenians should be sure their papers are in
order before flying to Russia. The Russian government estimates that
170,000 Armenians are living in Russia illegally; Russian authorities
turned away 23,000 Armenian citizens trying to enter the country
in 2013.
Human rights activist Artur Sakunts, head of the Vanadzor branch
of the Helsinki Civil Assembly, believes Moscow is using the new
regulations as an instrument of pressure on former Soviet republics
with significant numbers of migrants in Russia. Under the existing
framework, Armenia is expected to complete the Customs Union accession
process by January 2015. "The aim is ... to force these countries to
join the Customs Union, since they will lift these restrictions only
in the case these states enter the Customs Union's unified space,"
he said.
Armenian leaders are already lobbying for changes. Foreign Minister
Eduard Nalbandian has pledged that immigration rules will be discussed
during upcoming talks about the Customs Union, and National Security
Council Secretary Artur Baghdasarian has written a letter to his
Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev, asking that an exemption be
granted for Armenia.
If no exemption is granted, the domestic consequences for Armenia
could be dire, some observers predict.
For the thousands of people now left without work and who may find
themselves at a dead end, the only option may be to take to the streets
in mass protest, suggested political scientist Stepan Danielian,
chair of the Cooperation for Democracy Center. "If there aren't any
jobs and your family is starving, then what do you do? You have to
either take to the streets, or commit suicide," he concluded.
Independent political scientist Yervand Bozoian agreed, predicting
that "the numbers of protesters will significantly increase." Already
struggling with a weak economy, and persistent protests over its
plans for pension reform, the government lacks the resources to defuse
tensions, Bozoian noted. "The authorities must think about this and
draw conclusions," he said.
Editor's note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter in Yerevan
and the editor of MediaLab.am.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/68078
From: Baghdasarian
EurasiaNet.org
Feb 24 2014
February 24, 2014 - 2:21pm, by Marianna Grigoryan
Armenia's four competitors at the Sochi Winter Olympics didn't come
close to winning a medal. But a joke making the rounds in Yerevan
goes that since the athletes made it into Russia, they should at
least stick around and look for work.
Russia has long been a magnet for Armenian migrant laborers. But under
new Russian regulations that came into force on January 1, Armenians
and other foreigners who lack long-term visas can stay in Russia for
only three months before they must leave the country for another 90
days. They must remain in their home country for the same amount of
time. Violators are subject to a three-year ban on entering Russia;
those who have already been deported face a five-year ban.
Many Armenians expected they would be exempt from the new Russian
rules, given Yerevan's decision last September to join a Moscow-led
Customs Union along with Belarus and Kazakhstan. But it hasn't worked
out that way, and many are distraught.
After agreeing to join the Customs Union, the Armenian government
"told us everything would be fine, but we got into trouble," complained
55-year-old labor migrant Vanik Smbatian, who has worked on Russian
construction sites for the past 20 years to support his family. "The
new law came as a beautiful surprise, like the Olympic Games, and
simply spoiled our lives."
Ninety days is not enough time to find a job in Armenia and earn
money for a $350-$400 plane ticket back to Russia, migrants contend.
Unofficial estimates of unemployment in Armenia soar far into the
double-digits, while nearly a third of its population of roughly 3
million people lives under the poverty line.
While high unemployment has long been a problem, government data
suggests that increasingly Armenians are dependent on finding jobs
in Russia - in particular in construction or in service-sector jobs
-- to make ends meet. According to the Central Bank of Armenia,
remittances from Russia account for 84.6 percent of the overall $942
million transferred to Armenia during the first two quarters of 2013,
the latest period for which data is available. The amount marks a
12-percent increase from the same period in 2012.
Similarly, according to Russia's Federal Migration Service, 20 percent
more Armenians traveled to Russia in 2013 (roughly 670,000) than in
2012. The National Statistical Service of Armenia estimates that 90
percent of those who travel to Russia go to find work there.
With reduced access to Russian jobs, many Armenian families may find
themselves with no adequate means of support, local experts warn.
Against this backdrop, many want to know why Russia isn't willing
to give Armenian migrants a break. Officials in Moscow, however,
aren't offering any insight into their decision-making process.
At a February 14 news conference, Svetlana Stepanova, the migration
policy officer at the Russian Embassy in Yerevan, dodged questions
related to Armenia and the Customs Union. She also declined to explain
why similar labor restrictions do not apply to citizens of fellow
prospective Union members Belarus and Kazakhstan. "You are trying to
interfere with politics again. I do not know if an exception will be
made for Armenia or not," Stepanova told journalists.
Stepanova stressed that Armenians should be sure their papers are in
order before flying to Russia. The Russian government estimates that
170,000 Armenians are living in Russia illegally; Russian authorities
turned away 23,000 Armenian citizens trying to enter the country
in 2013.
Human rights activist Artur Sakunts, head of the Vanadzor branch
of the Helsinki Civil Assembly, believes Moscow is using the new
regulations as an instrument of pressure on former Soviet republics
with significant numbers of migrants in Russia. Under the existing
framework, Armenia is expected to complete the Customs Union accession
process by January 2015. "The aim is ... to force these countries to
join the Customs Union, since they will lift these restrictions only
in the case these states enter the Customs Union's unified space,"
he said.
Armenian leaders are already lobbying for changes. Foreign Minister
Eduard Nalbandian has pledged that immigration rules will be discussed
during upcoming talks about the Customs Union, and National Security
Council Secretary Artur Baghdasarian has written a letter to his
Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev, asking that an exemption be
granted for Armenia.
If no exemption is granted, the domestic consequences for Armenia
could be dire, some observers predict.
For the thousands of people now left without work and who may find
themselves at a dead end, the only option may be to take to the streets
in mass protest, suggested political scientist Stepan Danielian,
chair of the Cooperation for Democracy Center. "If there aren't any
jobs and your family is starving, then what do you do? You have to
either take to the streets, or commit suicide," he concluded.
Independent political scientist Yervand Bozoian agreed, predicting
that "the numbers of protesters will significantly increase." Already
struggling with a weak economy, and persistent protests over its
plans for pension reform, the government lacks the resources to defuse
tensions, Bozoian noted. "The authorities must think about this and
draw conclusions," he said.
Editor's note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter in Yerevan
and the editor of MediaLab.am.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/68078
From: Baghdasarian