— by the beginning of 1990, 3,834 refugees — Turks–Meskhetians (691 families) lived in the Territory;

— in July of 1990 — 8,642 people (1,106 families), the majority of them (5,420 people) settled in Krymsk Region;¹

— in early January of 1992 — 11,426 people, 7,109 of them — in Krymsk Region;²

— as of October 1, 1993 — 15,130 people (1,741 families) including 8,436 people in Krymsk Region;³

— as of October 1, 1994 — 13 340 people;⁴

— as of November of 1995 — 13 517 people.⁵

If the estimated number of the Turkish population in KK at the present time (as of the end of 1995) constitutes 5.1 million people while the total number of the Turks is 16 thousand people the portion of the latter reaches 0.31 per cent.

Basically, the forced migrants are concentrated in the Regions of Krymsk (8,458 people which constitutes approximately 5.9 per cent of the local population and 63.4 per cent of all the Turkish refugees in the Territory), Abinsk (1710), Apsheronsk (1214) and in the agricultural districts of Byelorechensk (935). Thus, they form two main areas of settling — in the west (Krymsk and Abinsk Regions) and in the south-east of the Territory (Apsheronsk Region and Byelorechensk). Relatively small groups reside also in Anapa (144), Kushchevsky (318), Abinsk (134) and other Regions as well as in Novorossiisk (207).⁶

According to the officers of Apsheronsk, Krymsk and Abinsk Regional ROVDs, records on the Meskhetian refugees were maintained by District Militia officers together with the village Soviets in 1989–1991. From 1989, the village Soviets and village administrations have had exact and regularly updated lists of all Turkish families. The local Meskhetian leaders in villages and stanitsas personally participated in compiling these lists. This information was subject to further updating in compliance with the available data on the latest changes — arrivals, departures, births and deaths. Up until now, the information on the actual residence of the Turks have been grounded on these lists certified by the local leaders and the village Soviets. The official statistical data related to the Turks–Meskhetians in the Territory is based on these records. In addition the GROVD PVS in Krymsk Region has made a card file providing data on all the Turks who have been living in the area.⁷ The Turks–Meskhetians are inclined to assess the consolidated figures as somewhat overestimated; in their opinion the authorities are relying upon outdated information which does not reflect the death-rate and the migration traffic quite adequately meaning that the real number of the Meskhetians in the Territory is ranging within the limits of 11–12 thousand people.⁸ Some representatives of the authorities say in their turn that they are not able to control the migrants’ movements and therefore the real number of Turkish refugees may exceed the official figures.

The overwhelming majority of the Turks (98.4 per cent according to the data of the MSKK) live in the countryside. Although not less than 8 per cent of the Turks officially reside within the areas of the urban-type settlements, the majority of them actually live like rural people.