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ARMENIAN RESIDENTS OF TSALKA KEEP DECREASING
[12:30 pm] 09 March, 2007

According to the statistic data of 2006, the population of Tsalka was
22600, among them 11000 Armenians, 8000 Georgians, 1500 Greeks, 1800
Azeris and 300 representatives of other nationalities, `Bagin-Info’
News Agency reports.

Prior to the collapse of the USSR, Greeks formed 75 percent of the
population. The census of 1979 revealed that there were 31000 Greeks
in Tsalka.

In 1979 – 2006 the Georgian residents of Tsalka increased by 7000
whereas the Armenians decreased by 3000 and the Greeks – by 30 000.

The increase of the Georgian population is determined by the policy of
the Georgian authorities. The point is that the Georgian residents of
Ajaria and Svanetia have been migrating to Tsalka since 1990 to find
shelter from natural calamities.

To note, most of the immigrants are not registered. According to some
non-official sources, there are currently 12000 Georgian residents in
Tsalka.

It is noteworthy that over the past 27 years the population of Tsalka
has increased in favor of the Georgians who outnumber the local Greeks
and Armenians.