Georgian Digest: excerpts
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Subject: Georgian Digest: excerpts
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Georgian Digest: excerpts
ANNOTATED DAILY HEADLINES OF THE GEORGIAN PRESS
Compiled by the Caucasian Institute for Peace, Democracy and
Development (CIPDD)
Text: Tamara Shamil
English version: Guram Dumbadze
Editor: Emil Adelkhanov-Steinberg
September 28, 1998
1. Can We Live Without Each Other?
The Georgian president has offered Abkhazia the highest-ever
federation status in the history of world federalism. He is ready to
accept the Abkhaz leader Vladislav Ardzinba's invitation and meet him
in Sukhumi. He says there cannot be any winners in a fratricidal war,
and those Abkhaz who are going to celebrate the 5th anniversary of
their victory over Georgia must remember that they gained such an
"achievement" through genocide of the Georgian people.
"7 Dge" No. 113, September 28-29
2. "Let's Ask the Russians to Sing Us a Mourning Song for Abkhazia ":
Nothing Else Is Left to Refugees But Cynicism
On occasion of the 5th anniversary of the fall of Sukhumi, the
Co-ordination Council of the Refugees from Abkhazia and South Ossetia
had scheduled a rally on Republic Square of Tbilisi for September 27
but it proved a failure. Only 50 people gathered in the square. The
rally ended in a march along the main avenue of the capital, escorted
by a large number of the police. Boris Kakubava, the chairman of the
Council, says as the authorities do not allow to hold a congress of
the refugees in Tbilisi, it will be held in Adjaria.
"Resonance" No. 265, September 28
-----------------------------
September 29, 1998
.......................
2. Tbilisi Will Try to Get the NATO Involved in the Settlement of the
Conflict in Abkhazia
The NATO Secretary General Javier Solano is visiting Tbilisi today for
talks with the Georgian President,
the Chairman of Parliament, defence and foreign ministers. Although no
documents will be signed,
Tbilisi has high hopes of his visit as it is the opportunity to draw
his attention to the problem
of Abkhazia.
Mirian Lebanidze. "Resonance" No. 266, September 29, p. 4
3. Russia Granted the Abkhaz Separatists $12 Mln
Abkhazia which is currently suffering from a severe economic crisis
triggered by that in Russia has got
$12 mln from some official or unofficial Russian structures. It helped
little to improve the situation. Nevertheless, the self-proclaimed
republic is going to celebrate the 5th anniversary of its victory over
Georgia tomorrow. The leaders of the North Caucasian republics and
some Russian MPs are invited to the
celebration.
Rusiko Mikava, Tamar Gudjabidze. "Resonance" No. 266, September 29,
pp. 1, 10
4. Aslan Abashidze Ascribes the Idea of Merging Samtskhe-Djavakheti
and Adjaria to the President
According to Aslan Abashidze, the Adjarian leader, a year ago
Shevardnadze offered him to enlarge the
autonomy by joining the neighbouring Samtskhe-Djavakheti region and
has many times repeated his
idea since then. Now Abashidze supports this proposal as a way to
strengthen the Georgian
sovereignty.
Shalva Kvaskhvadze. "Sakartvelos Gazeti" No. 112, September 29, p. 1
5. Scarlet Fever, the Disease of Our Childhood
The pro-Russian Popular Patriotic Union (PPU) held its congress
yesterday. Some 1,400 people attended.
The audience greeted the election of Igor Giorgadze (the outlawed
former security minister charged with
assassination attempt against the president) a honourary member of the
presidium with shouts "Long
live the future president of Georgia, Igor Giorgadze!" In his speech,
the main ideologist, Vakhtang Goguadze, accused "American colonialism"
of having broken Abkhazia away from Georgia and thus driven Georgia
away from Russia. It is no wonder that Viktor Zorkaltsev, No 2 in
Gennady Zyuganov's Communist party, proposed integration into Russia
as the only way of salvation. But wonder it is that Boris Kakubava,
the chairman of the Co-ordination Council of the Refugees, who used to
call Shevardnadze "the Kremlin's agent", also stood up "for the
raproachment with the co-religinous country".
Toma Chagelishvili. "Sakartvelos Gazeti" No. 112, September 29, p. 2
-----------------------------
September 30, 1998
.......................
3. The Russian Foreign Ministry Accuses Georgia of Aggravating the
Situation in Abkhazia
An armoured personnel carrier of the Russian peacekeepers in Abkhazia
was blown up by a mine in the Gali district on September 28, wounding
four servicemen. At his yesterday's briefing, Vladimir Rakhmanin, the
director of the information department of the Russian foreign
ministry, blamed the incident on the Georgian armed groups based in
the Zugdidi district and eager to spoil the peaceful negotiations.
"Sakartvelos Gazeti" No. 113, September 30, p. 1
-----------------------------
October 1, 1998
1. If You Are More Active
Javier Solano, the NATO Secretary General, and Zurab Zhvania, the
Chairman of Parliament, held talks yesterday. The latter claimed the
regional conflicts to be the main hurdle in the country's way towards
free economy and civil society. The international community, in his
opinion, should pay more attention to their settlement. He said more
active co-operation with the NATO in the field of security would be
very important for Georgia. For his part, Mr. Solano emphasised that
beside the military dimension, the notion of security has political
and economic ones. In his words, co-operation with Georgia and the
other Transcaucasian states is one of the NATO's priorities. The same
day Mr. Solano left for Baku.
Black Sea Press. "Droni" No. 112, October 1-3, p. 1
2. Batumi Yesterday
The Batumi seaport was barred yesterday: while officials of the
Adjarian security service, coast guard and the port administration
were bustling around the shore, Russian military boats under the
Georgian state banner (as they were in the Georgian home waters) were
moving up and down at high speed in the coastal waters. Referring to
informal sources, the newspaper claims that the Russian frontier
troops were replaced with new ones. Reportedly, there were also some
talks between the Russian military and the Adjarian leadership.
According to another source, they proved fruitless. This is all that
the reporter was able to find out. Late at night two Russian military
boats at high speed left for Poti.
Johnny Kalandadze. "Alia" No. 167, October 1-2, p. 1
.......................
4. Shevardnadze Did Not Ask Abashidze to Take Care of the Regions
At his last press-conference, Aslan Abashidze, the Adjarian leader,
refuted his earlier statement that Eduard Shevardnadze had offered him
to merge Adjaria and the Samtskhe-Djavakheti region. He blamed
journalists for incorrect reporting. It were, in his words, the Guria
or Samegrelo regions that Shevardnadze proposed him to join to
Adjaria.
Khatuna Bitsadze. "Resonance" No. 268, October 1, p. 2
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