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RF foreign ministry refutes media allegations about high mortality among labor migrants

Official statistics of Russian law enforcement agencies registered 39 cases of violent death of Tajik citizens throughout Russia in 201

MOSCOW, June 12 /ITAR-TASS/. Reports about allegedly high mortality rates among labour migrants from Tajikistan in Russia is absolutely groundless, the Russian foreign ministry said on Wednesday, commenting on mass media reports.

“Regrettably, such “sensations,” despite the fact that they are absolutely groundless, are readily disseminated in some media, which take little care about their professional reputation. They even cite the figure of about 500 Tajik migrants killed in Moscow and the Moscow region,” the ministry said.

“However, official statistics of Russian law enforcement agencies registered 39 cases of violent death of Tajik citizens throughout Russia in 2013,” the ministry noted. “The bulk of such deaths resulted from conflicts between migrants. Since about 1.5 million Tajik citizens are working in Russia, such natural processes as passing away cannot be ruled out. These deaths might result from diseases, accidents, or, regrettably, violence.”

“This statistics is very much alike the situation in Tajikistan,” the ministry said. “As concerns cases of death through violence of Tajik labour migrants in Russia, there are not very many of them. Russian law enforcement agencies thoroughly investigate each such case and take measures to prevent them.”

“Obviously, labour migration is a help not only for Tajikistan’s economy, it has become a source of forming Russia’s gross domestic product. Much has been done to give this process a civilized character,” the ministry said, referring to the agreement on the sojourn procedure for Tajik citizens that came into force in late 2013.