New York Times on life at “shifting border of Georgia and Russia”

"Imagine waking up and realizing that you are now living in a different country. But you never moved", New York Times’ Remy Tumin writes in a recent photo story about "people living in Tskhinvali, or South Ossetia, a region recognized by the United States and NATO as Georgian territory but a Russian stronghold for the last 30 years”.

The story further says that since 2008, more than 300,000 Georgians have been displaced from their homes.

In 2011, Russia fortified the borders, putting fences and barbed wire across wide swaths of the region. Now, Georgians cannot come within 200 meters of the border or risk being kidnapped, detained and fined", it reads.

For more than a year Georgian photographer Tako Robakidze visited villages across the region, where almost everyone she encountered had a similar story.

A woman cleaning beans in the village of Gugutiantkari. Photo by T. Robakidze

For her new project "Creeping Borders” she met with people who shared the same troubles and hopes.

They can’t go near the border because they’re afraid of detention. There are no more pastures because the land is occupied; they can’t have as many cows as they used to have", Robakidze said.

According to the story "agriculture is an economic pillar for the region, and most local people support their families through livestock, fruits and vegetables. But the fields have dried out. And when water is available, the valve is controlled by Russians”.

They work the land they still have, this is how most of the people support their family. Without their land, they will have nothing", Robakidze said.

The photographer is working on an accompanying documentary for her project, and shared excerpts from her interviews with the villagers.

Read the full story here: www.nytimes.com