The Human Rights situation of the Yezidi minority - UNHCR

Executive Summary
The Yezidis of the South Caucasus are a heterodox Kurdish community and one of the least
well-known Kurdish communities of the world. Located primarily in Armenia and Georgia,
Yezidi communities have undergone significant decline since the collapse of the Soviet
Union. This decline has been most marked in Georgia, where over a third of the community
is thought to have left the country.
The human rights context in the South Caucasus allows a partial explanation of this decline.
Although, resources allowing, Yezidis are able to freely associate and express their cultural
identity, they have experienced significant obstacles to the enjoyment of economic, social and
cultural rights. As an ethnic minority without alternative levers of influence, such as an
external kin-state or an organized international diaspora, Yezidis have also remained
vulnerable to violations of their civil and political rights, although such violations do not
appear to be systematic in nature.
States in the South Caucasus remain highly reluctant to introduce comprehensive minority
rights standards, which would allow Yezidis and other minorities to protect their rights more
effectively. South Caucasian states have effectively resisted the mantle of “host state” with
regard to their ethnic minorities, and have refused to accept responsibilities incumbent upon
them as members of international organizations and conventions such as the Framework
Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. While other minorities have been able
to rely on alternative sources of support, such as local demographic majorities or external
kin-states, Yezidis have remained totally unprotected.
Other aspects of Yezidi community life, such as the very specific internal structure of the
community, the impact of privatization on traditional ways of life and debates over identity,
have rendered the community vulnerable to decline. Under these conditions many Yezidis
have apparently opted for migration to now substantial Yezidi communities abroad, primarily
in Western Europe. These migration flows look unlikely to cease in the foreseeable future.
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