Reshuffled Government Sets Focus Towards South Ossetia
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| Ossetian militia at the entrance of Tskhinvali. |
Visits by Georgian officials to the breakaway region of South Ossetia and deliveries of humanitarian aid by these authorities to the locals, have became a common news headlines in recent days.
On June 8, the Georgian Healthcare Minister delivered medicines for some 700-800 people in the South Ossetian capital, Tskhinvali. He was preceded in his efforts by the Agriculture Minister, Davit Shervashidze, who was able to distribute agricultural fertilizers into two Ossetian villages on June 4, despite being barred from entering several other villages. Earlier, even the chief of the Georgian Railway, Davit Onoprishvili donned a pair of worker overalls to help join in the efforts to restore a rail link, just 4 km away from Tskhinvali. Rehabilitation of the road linking Tskhinvali with the rest of Georgia is also underway.
Georgian officials say that these activities directed towards South Ossetia require “a high level of coordination” among the governmental agencies.
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| Georgian railway chief (left) observers the restoration of a rail link 4 km away from Tskhinvali. EU has donated 400,000 euros to Georgia to help restore railway route. |
“The priorities of the Georgian government have changed since the return of Adjara back to Tbilisi’s fold. It is not a secret that now we are focused on the reunification of South Ossetia and this needs more effective coordination, not only within the security agencies but other ministries as well, including the Agriculture and Healthcare Ministries,” Vano Merabishvili said in an interview with Rustavi 2 television on June 7.
Working within the capacity of his newly designated post of Security Minister, Merabishvili will also perform the duties of the Vice Premier, which mainly entails the coordination of activities within the law enforcement and security agencies.
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| A Russian peacekeeper checks a car at the Tkviavi checkpoint, less than 10 km away from Tskhinvali. Georgian and Ossetian peacekeepers are also deployed there. |
“But South Ossetia will be a much more difficult and long-termed task for the government. The main difference is that, unlike South Ossetia, Adjara is populated with a majority of ethnic Georgians. But in South Ossetia our main task will be to rebuild trust towards Georgians by ethnic Ossetians,” Merabishvili said.
The launching of broadcasts in the Ossetian language by Georgian state radio and television stations was part of Tbilisi’s efforts to restore this trust with ethnic Ossetians. Following the daily news programs in the Ossetian language on the Georgian First State Television Channel, the state radio station also began airing a two-hour daily program in the Ossetian language for the Ossetian-speaking population.
The predominately Georgian village of Nikozi lies directly in the conflict zone, just 4 km away from Tskhinvali, and expectations for the resolution of the decade-long conflict among villagers there, are higher than ever before.
“After the success in Adjara, we hope that the government will deal with this conflict as well. We are really happy to see workers restoring the railway, which runs through our village. The railway connection will make our lives easier,” Tariel Gorozashvili, a resident of Nikozi, told Civil Georgia.
“The only thing we want is peace. Common people, both Georgians and Ossetians always lived side by side here. We had, and even now have, mixed [Georgian-Ossetian] marriages. But a certain amount of mistrust still persists. Now it’s up to the authorities to deal with this mistrust,” Zhuzhuna Koberidze, another villager from Nikozi told Civil Georgia.