GEORGIA: The Weimar Triangle & more – 14th Nov 2024

Gamarjobat from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Georgia Update from the 14th of November twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Georgia.

On Thursday, the 7th, the Weimar Triangle, which consists of France’s President Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, made a joint statement about Georgia. They criticized the direction the Georgian government is heading, particularly with its recent legislation that clashes with European values, like the Russian law and anti-LGBT law. They warned that unless Georgia continues its reforms and repeals these laws, they won’t be able to support opening talks for the country's EU accession.

Next up, on Monday, the 11th, the chairpersons of foreign relations committees from eight European countries—Finland, Sweden, France, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, and Germany—visited Tbilisi. They met with Georgia's president, Salome Zourabishvili, civil society members, and opposition parties. Members of the Georgian Dream or Otsneba, the ruling party, declined to meet them.

The delegation also attended a rally in front of parliament, where they showed solidarity with pro-European demonstrators, called for an investigation into alleged election fraud, and criticized Otsneba for refusing to engage in dialogue with them.

While on the topic of demonstrations, last week, we reported that Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg unexpectedly arrived in Tbilisi to join the pro-European protests in solidarity. On Monday, the 11th, she organized her own demonstration in Tbilisi, near Liberty Square.

On Instagram, she urged people to protest against the wave of authoritarianism and exploitation sweeping through the Caucasus. Thunberg called out Ivanishvili, Putin, Erdogan, and the theocratic regime of Iran, but she focused most of her criticism on Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan's dictator. She condemned the regime for using the UN Climate Change Conference, currently happening in Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, as a façade to ramp up control under a false green agenda, all while tightening its grip on power and escalating regional tensions.

Speaking of Azerbaijan, on Monday, the 11th, the wife and children of Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Sadigov and representatives of the media and NGOs held a demonstration in front of Azerbaijan's embassy in Tbilisi. Sadigov was detained in Georgia at the beginning of August. He is wanted in Azerbaijan, which has requested his extradition.

According to the NGO Social Equality Center, Sadigov is being persecuted for criticizing President Aliyev, and there is no legal basis for his detention. His health is also deteriorating as he has been on a hunger strike to protest his treatment. The court has extended his detention for extradition purposes by three months, and the NGO plans to appeal the decision.

In other news, on Friday, the 8th, four opposition parties met with Paweł Herczyński, the EU Ambassador to Georgia. After the meeting, Badri Japaridze, one of the leaders of the Coalition Strong Georgia or Dzlieri, which includes Lelo, said that the parties are working together on a report that will present evidence of systemic fraud during the elections. Once the report is finished, they plan to give it to the Ambassador to forward to Brussels. They hope the EU will send an international delegation to investigate the evidence on the ground and conclude that the elections were neither fair nor equal and were outright stolen by Otsneba.

Interesting developments unfolded in the breakaway region of Abkhazia. On Monday, the 11th, five opposition members were arrested with guns held to their heads. Soon after, hundreds of people, including family members of the detainees, gathered in front of the state security building where the authorities held the opposition members. The demonstrators then blocked several bridges in the city, leading to clashes with security forces. The authorities stationed heavy military equipment outside Abkhazia’s de facto presidential administration building.

The arrests are likely connected to the Investment Agreements that the Abkhazian parliament is planning to ratify on the 15th of November, which would grant Russian citizens the right to build and buy property in Abkhazia. The opposition argues that this law could make Abkhazians a minority in their own country.

Since we are talking about Georgia’s breakaway regions, on Thursday, the 7th, the United Kingdom imposed sanctions on Anatoly Bibilov, the former de facto president of South Ossetia. This was part of a new sanctions package targeting suppliers that support Russia’s military production, Russian-backed mercenary groups in sub-Saharan Africa, three private mercenary groups linked to the Kremlin, and eleven individuals.

Bibilov is known for his ties to Russian mercenary groups, and the sanctions against him include asset freezes and a travel ban. The UK government also accused him of being involved in destabilizing Ukraine and threatening its territorial integrity and independence.

On an unrelated note, On Tuesday, the 12th, the mayor’s office of Mestia, a municipality in the mountainous region of Svaneti in the country's northwest, issued a statement urging locals to turn off their crypto mining devices. Over the past few years, Svaneti has become a hotspot for miners, leading to a huge spike in electricity demand. In the statement, the mayor’s office warned that if the situation continues, it will be impossible to provide an adequate supply of electricity. Similar warnings have been issued before, but they've had little effect. Unless a law regulating the use of mining devices and electricity is passed, the region could soon face electricity shortages.

In October alone, Georgia's foreign exchange reserves dropped by over 625 million dollars, with 213 million used just to maintain the value of the Georgian Lari and prevent further currency depreciation. Roman Gotsiridze, an MP from the United National Movement or Natsebi, pointed out that in just over a year, the reserves have dropped by 1.3 billion dollars—an even larger decline than during the COVID pandemic. The current reserve level stands at just over 4 billion dollars, which is very low for a country with a moderate BB credit rating and could soon lead to its downgrade.

Continuing with economics, on Monday the 11th, Georgia's National Statistics Service released data showing that the country's external trade grew by 5.5% from January to October compared to the same period last year. Total trade reached nineteen billion dollars.

The data shows that Georgia's exports rose by over 7%, totaling 5.47 billion dollars, while imports increased by almost 5%, reaching 13.55 billion. As a result, the country has a trade deficit of 8.09 billion, or 42.5% of the total trade turnover.

The Georgian NGO Court Sentry reports that judges in the courts of first and second instances will receive nearly 700,000 Lari in bonuses, which is over 25,000 dollars, for November. The High Council of Justice of Georgia, the supreme oversight body responsible for regulating the judiciary, made the decision on Monday the 11th.

Nazi Janezashvili, a representative of Court Sentry, says judges receive these bonuses in addition to their salaries each month to strengthen their loyalty to the ruling party. The bonuses are not selective, and every judge gets one. This month, the bonus equals 50% of their fixed salary. Janezashvili explains that this arrangement ensures judges remain compliant with the current judicial and political system.

And to wrap up this edition, some cultural news. The CrossKultur Festival will screen short movies, feature films, and documentaries by five Georgian women directors and will take place in Berlin from the 22nd to the 25th of November. The screenings will be held at the Halfsister Berlin studio, and admission is free. This year, The Festival focuses on democracy and social cohesion. The selection of the directors and their movies were based on how they aligned with this year’s theme.

Check out the schedule and location details with the link in the show notes!

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

Thanks for sticking around for this episode of the Rorshok Georgia update! If you’ve got questions, thoughts, or just want to say hi, reach out at info@rorshok.com. Don’t forget to hit subscribe on your favorite podcast app!

Nakhvamdis!