De facto Tskhinvali closes temporarily opened crossing point, keeps Akhalgori district isolated
Only pensioners living in the Russian-controlled Akhalgori district were allowed to leave the district at the end of last month. Photo: Goga Aptsiauri/RFE/RL.
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The Russian-controlled de facto leadership of Tskhinvali has closed the Razdakhani crossing point for Akhalgori population, which was opened for pensioners only on January 24, 2020, after almost a five-month illegal closure.
Local civic activists say that a small portion of those who were allowed to leave the Russian-occupied district decided to stay on the Tbilisi-administered territory either for treatment or to spend the winter with relatives.
The de facto authorities, who illegally closed crossing points connecting Akhalgori with the rest of Georgia in early September of 2019, stated last month that the Razdakhani crossing point will reopen once in two months for the pensioners ‘who have no citizenship of South Ossetia (Tskhinvali) and receive their pension on Tbilisi-administered territory.’
Tskhinvali has not yet announced the date for the next reopening of the crossing point.
Locals say that they face severe problems due to the illegal closure of crossing points with the rest of Georgia. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
Locals say that the humanitarian situation on the ground is severe as they have no access to quality medical aid and the everyday items they used to buy in other regions of the county.
The reason for the closure of the crossing points was the opening of a police post on the Tbilisi-administered territory, in the village of Chorchana, by the central Georgian government at the end of the summer of 2019.
The de facto leadership says that the police post ‘is too close to our country and poses security threats to our population.’
They say that the crossing points will reopen after the police post is dismantled which Tbilisi refuses to do.
Georgian civic activist Tamar Mearakishvili, who lives in Georgia’s Russian-controlled Akhalgori district, has released the photos of Akhalgori, with no people walking on the streets and lights rarely coming from windows.Mearakishvili, who is politically persecuted by de facto authorities of Tskhinvali, says that many people have left the district since the Russia-Georgia 2008 war, when Russia expanded its control on Akhalgori.
Tamar Gigauri, 60, who received heavy injuries after falling into a well of seven meters deep in Georgia’s Russian-controlled Akhalgori district in early November of 2019 has only today been allowed to leave the district to receive necessary treatment on the Tbilisi-administered territory.
The European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia (EUMM) has welcomed the decision of the de facto authorities of the Russian-occupied Georgian region of Tskhinvali to temporarily reopen a crossing point between its Akhalgori district and the rest of Georgia for pensioners only after an almost five-month closure.
De facto authorities of Georgia’s Russian-occupied Tskhinvali region has temporarily opened the crossing point between occupied Akhalgori district and the rest of Georgia for pensioners only after an almost five-month closure, which has created a severe humanitarian situation on the ground. Local civic activist Tamar Mearakishvili reports that the crossing point opened earlier today for pensioners “whose only income is the pension issued by the central government” of Georgia.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili said yesterday that the closure of the Akhalgori crossing point connecting the occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region, with the rest of Georgia “is yet another violation of human rights”.
State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia Ketevan Tsikhelashvili said yesterday that two ethnic Georgian principals have been dismissed from schools in the Russia-occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region, which is “yet another proof of repression” of the occupying forces on the ground.
EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia Toivo Klaar says that important discussions have been held with the involvement of the UN and OSCE regarding the current security situation at the occupation lines in Georgia. Crossing points between Russian-occupied Tskhinvali region and the rest of Georgia have been closed for more than six month, since September 4, 2019.
Local media reports that there is not enough food in Georgia’s Russian-controlled Tskhinvali region, with dairy products and children’s food in particular deficit. Media outlet Rec reports that food has not entered from Russia into the region for more than a week due to certain, technicnical problems and the local ‘de facto authorities are holding talks to resolve the problem.’
De facto president of Georgia’s Russian-occupied Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) region Anatoly Bibilov has signed a degree on restoring the Soviet-era name of Stalinir for the region’s main town of Tskhinvali.