National Minority Festival in Georgia, 15-25 October 2000
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From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 07:39:51 +0200 (EET)
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Subject: National Minority Festival in Georgia, 15-25 October 2000
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Original sender: Arnold Stepanian <[email protected]>
National Minority Festival in Georgia, 15-25 October 2000
(Translated from Russian by MINELRES)
Dear friends,
I would like to inform you that the Public Movement "Multinational
Georgia", in cooperation with international NGO Caucasus Links and
with financial support of the European initiatives for Human rights
and Democracy and the Board of Great Britain Charity Lottery, have
held a two-week long festival of national minorities of Georgia "ALL
FOR GEORGIA - GEORGIA FOR ALL - 2000" (15-25 October).
Events were held every day in the offices of the Georgia's ethnic
communities (Armenian, Azeri, Jewish, Russian, Yezidi, Polish, Greek,
Ossetian, Latvian, German, etc.). Discussions on issues important for
national minorities, exhibitions of handicraft arts, theatre
performances, concerts, etc. were organised. The biggest concert halls
of he Tbilisi city were employed. A conference "National Minorities
and the State" was held in the Parliament of Georgia, organised by
international NGOs LINKS, CAUCASUS LINKS, and by the Committee on
Civic Integration of the Georgian Parliament. Organisational support
for the conference was provided by the Public Movement "Multinational
Georgia".
The festival was held already for the second time and has become a
tradition. Last year, the key phase of the festival was "The Alive
Chain" made of 1,200 members of Georgia's ethnic communities, who,
holding each other's hands, were standing on the root Mosque -
Armenian Apostolic Church - Synagogue - Georgian Orthodox Cathedral
"Syoni". In the meantime, in all these temples the services were held
in the name of peace and stability in Georgia and in the Caucasus.
A plenty of guests, representatives of ethnic communities of Georgia,
NGOs, members of the government and the parliament of Georgia,
international organisations, and special guests from different
countries were present at the festival "ALL FOR GEORGIA - GEORGIA FOR
ALL - 2000" (15-25 October).
Main tasks and purposes of the Festival were the following: raising
civic awareness of the national minorities of Georgia, intercultural
education, exchange and interaction, popularisation of the minority
rights defense campaign, development of the integration processes,
etc.
Approximately 8,000 people were engaged in organisation and conduct of
the Festival. The Festival "ALL FOR GEORGIA - GEORGIA FOR ALL - 2000"
on 15 October was solemnly opened by the member of the UK House of
Lords, Baroness Smith Gilmor-Hill.
Arnold Stepanian
Chairman of Public Movement Multinational Georgia
10 Kedis Commun str.
380005. Tbilisi
Georgia.
Tel. (995 77)44 35 64 (mob)
(995 32)98 33 39 (of)
Fax. (995 32) 92 12 19
E-mail: [email protected]
[email protected]
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