UK Foreign Office: Russia continues violation of human rights in Georgia's occupied regions
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An annual report of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office focuses on Russian influence in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions and the severe infringement of ethnic Georgians' human rights.
The report says Russia is responsible for the restriction of free movement of ethnic Georgians at a number of locations, as well as closing the so-called crossing points and limitation of education, healthcare and property rights.
So-called border near the occupied Tskhinvali region. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
2018 marked the tenth anniversary of the Georgia-Russia conflict. Russian influence in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the breakaway regions of Georgia, continued to contribute to infringements of human rights. This included intimidating members of civil society organisations. With the majority of crossing points closed and increased fencing along the Administrative Boundary Line, restrictions on freedom of movement continued,” the report says.
The report also adds that all the aforementioned affected access education, healthcare, and property.
There were also credible reports of discrimination against ethnic Georgians’ ability to access identity documents,’’ the report reads.
The 2018 report says the UK supported Georgian resolutions at the UN General Aseembly on internally displaced persons and the UN Human Rights Council (requesting access for the OHCHR).
The Human Rights and Democracy annual report presentation was held at the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office on June 6.
The full report is available here.
Georgia will take over the chairmanship of Council of Europe’s (CoE) Committee of Ministers for a six-month term from November 2019 to May 2020. The chairmanship will be passed from France to Georgia at a meeting in mid-November 2019 at the CoE’s Strasbourg headquarters, attended by representatives of its 47 member states.
The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CoE) adopted a decision on conflict in Georgia at its 1345th meeting of minister’s deputies in Strasbourg on May 2. The deputy ministers reiterated CoE’s “unequivocal support” for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally recognised borders.
The Council of Europe (CoE) has issued its new consolidated report on the conflict in Georgia. The report focuses on human rights and security situation in the Russian occupied regions of Georgia – Abkhazia and Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) between October 2018 and March 2019.
The Council of European Union has praised Georgian human rights reforms in the EU Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World 2018.
The newly appointed Minister of State for Europe and the Americas at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom, Christopher Pincher said the UK will remain Georgia’s important ally and supporter. Minister Pincher made the remarks during a phone conversation with the Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani earlier today. Minister Zalkaliani congratulated Christopher Pincher on becoming UK’s Minister of State.