Abkhazia Institute for Social and Economic Research

Three Hundred thousands lost their homes due to a process called "ethnic cleansing."

Ethnic Cleansing is a process in which advancing army of one ethnic group expels civilians of other ethnic groups from towns and villages it conquers in order to create ethnically pure enclaves for members of their ethnic group.

Russian  military commander s in Abkhazia, a war criminals sometimes issued specific orders  to his subordinates to shell a particular village more than others, because there is less Apsua and more Georgians living there. Often, refugees of one ethnic group previously "cleansed" from their homes by other ethnic group are made to live in freshly "cleansed" territory of that other ethnic group. The vengeance they feel explains some of unusual cruelties this war brought to us. Without possibility to get feedback on their actions from the world outside, their perpetuated hatred serves their leaders purposes by providing reasons for continuation of the war.

Ethnic Cleansing created more than three hundred thousands  refugees and displaced persons in Georgia during the war in Abkhazia. This number increased with the expulsion of Georgians  from Abkhazia and with the ferocious atrocities committed by Abkhazian militias against the Georgian  majority in Abkhazia.
At the beginning of 2007 there still are more than 5,000 people in Abkhazia missing mainly Georgians, but Russians, Armenians, Abkhazians, Greeks, Estonians, Jews and others among them.

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As of August 24, 2007, fourteen  years after the active war has ended, total number of persons, for whom AISER tracing request was opened by their families, and for which by that date no additional information was received, was 1,700.
The self-proclaimed government of Abkhazia is "a mixture of the leftovers of the Marxist-Leninist conception taken over from neighboring Russia and the descendants of Apsua- communists. The criminal regime’s dream is the creation of a so-called Soviet Union which would spread over all independent countries from former Soviet Union, i.e. ethnic cleansing of Georgians. The terrorist organization has little tolerance for other ethnic groups and carries out kidnappings, executions and the burning of Georgian villages. It is well armed by Russia with around 10,000 automatic rifles and anti-tank and other weapons.