Small War? Big Questions?

Two years ago, firefights between Georgians and South Ossetians escalated into a general war between Russia and Georgia. While the fighting lasted less than a week, the effects continue to echo across the South Caucasus, Europe and the Transatlantic community. From the first weeks after the conflict, the Heinrich Boell Foundation has engaged key issues, ranging from the concerns of internally displaced persons to the report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Conflict in Georgia (Tagliavini report) or the pan-European implications of the war.

To mark the second anniversary of the conflict, the Foundation asked leading Georgian and European experts to address questions that still face the Caucasus: integration with Europe, relations between Russia and Georgia, democratic development after a war, and a host of others. Seven papers discuss the challenges that citizens and leaders must come to terms with in the wake of the Russia-Georgia war. In addition, this dossier brings together the summaries of the Foundation’s debates on topics related to the war. All in all, even two years after the fighting many issues are unresolved, and the possibility of new conflict is far too near.

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Red Terror Topography – In the small hours of the morning on June 25, 2010, the Georgian government removed a statue of the Joseph Stalin from the central square of his hometown of Gori. Georgian media and civil society were instantly abuzz with talk about dismantling the dictator’s statue and the ambivalent views many Georgian still hold about Stalin and his era. The Heinrich Boell Foundation (HBF), in cooperation with DVV International and the new non-governmental organization “The Soviet Past Research Laboratory,” has been developing an innovative project about the Stalin era to provide a new means for Georgians to address their past. Official action to move the Stalin statue from the central square to a nearby museum shows that the time is right for looking back at Georgia’s history. 

“The Topography of Red Terror” will develop routes and tours showing buildings and places associated with Soviet terror and repression. Guides will be trained to explain and interpret the sites for Georgians and international visitors. By directly encountering the locations where people in Georgia experienced injustice at the hands of the state, citizens and visitors can have a more vital understanding of the shape.

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IDP Public Debates – Local Self-Government, Upcoming Local Elections and IDPs – accountability, responsibility and participation – Within the framework of the project “IDP Public Debates” the Heinrich Boell Foundation organized the series of public discussions for the community of IDPs in Gori, Tskaltubo and Zugdidi.

The topic of discussions for all three debates was: “Local Self-Government, Upcoming Local Elections and IDPs – accountability, responsibility and participation”. As a result of the discussions held in Gori, Tskaltubo and Zugdidi one major problem was outlined – the most urgent issues that concern the IDP society are unfortunately beyond the competence of the local government and all the questions that are raised during such debates are not possible to be answered thoroughly from the side of the local government representatives.

Khatuna Samnidze more»

IDP Debates in Gori, Tskaltubo and Zugdidi – The HBF is conducting a new series of debates, dealing with the problems of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Georgia. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), due to the conflicts in the 1990s and the August war 2008, more than 247,000 people have fled from their hometowns and are now living in settlements or former sanatoriums and hospitals especially in the border regions to the occupied territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. more»

A Little War That Shook the World: Georgia, Russia and the Future of the West – “If Poland becomes a member of NATO, there will be nuclear war.” A Russian general delivered that warning to Ronald D. Asmus in the 1990s, on just his third day in the job of advancing the Clinton administration’s policy of NATO enlargement. When Asmus spoke on a panel at the South Caucasus Regional Office of the Heinrich Boell Foundation on April 15, 2010, he did not reveal how he answered his pugnacious counterpart. Diplomatically, he also left the general unnamed. Dr. Iris Kempe more»

The Academic Community in Contemporary Azerbaijan. Academic Structures and Independent Research NGOs: Challenges and Prospects for Cooperation – Contemporary Azerbaijan is a largely oil based economy, which has been able to benefit from continual high world oil prices over the past years. Despite the double digit growth rates, which the country was able to maintain until recently, the development of human capital and with it the advance of science and research remains in a backward stage. One alleged contributing factor may be a general undervaluation of the contributions of autochthonous science, education, and independent research for the further development of contemporary society and a subsequent shortage of public financing accorded to this sector. But the predicament Azerbaijan’s scientific community finds itself in is two-fold: Scientists do not only feel a lack of appreciation by their own government, but foreign Funds and Foundations have also been reluctant to put support of Azerbaijan’s scientific community on their agenda. Ulrike Graalfs more»

Back to the Future: Developing a Topography of the Terror – November 17, 2009 - Together with local historians and international experts in the culture of memory, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and dvv international are developing guided educational tours that will visit selected locations in Tbilisi that are related to repression and state terror during the Soviet period. Like similar efforts in Germany or the Baltic states, the tours will be part of a culture of memory, helping to come to terms with difficult legacies of the past. more»

14 May, 2010
The existence of strong democratic institutions in the regions is the key for the successful democratic reforms in the country. In this regard, the strong local self-government is the bases for the future democratic developments in the region. Considering this, what is the situation today in the region of Adjara?  What do the representatives of local government and local society think about existing self-government model? How do they view their roles and places in the development process of local self-government? Newspaper "Batumelebi". Insert #5 (pdf) more»

Environmental Challenges in Poti Region: What do we have to change? – 15 May, 2010
Ecology is a more and more pressing topic which is related to many problems everywhere throughout Georgia. But especially in the city of Poti, which on the one hand is one of the most important ports in the whole Black Sea Region and on the other hand is immediately situated nearby the Kolkheti National Parkwhich covers an area of 28 940 ha of land, the question of how to combine economic development and ecological sustainability is especially important. more»

Challenges for Tourism in Kakheti – 27 April, 2010
Luscious green fields, rolling hills, deep valleys, countless vineyards, national parks and blue rivers against a backdrop of the Caucasian mountains – the Kakheti region of Georgia, known for its monasteries, landmarks, artists, and excellent vines and meat dishes among others, has always been a tourist attraction during Soviet and post-Soviet times alike. More than 300.000 visitors used to come to see its beautiful nature, taste its infamous vines and experience the Kakhetien hospitality every year before the breakdown of the Soviet Union. Although this number has decreased, more than 90 percent of Georgia’s tourists still pay a visit to this region during their stay. more»

Batumi Then and Now – 21 April, 2010
It is quite difficult to find a city in Georgia, or anywhere else in the South Caucasus for that matter, that is changing its image as fast as the city of Batumi. The rehabilitation project of Old Batumi and new hotels being built in the city are just a few examples of large-scale projects currently underway in Batumi. more»

Constitutional Changes: Expectations, Challenges and Perspectives – March 10, 2010 - Batumi
Georgia has amended its constitution more than ninety times since it was adopted in 1995. The frequency of alterations implies that the constitution currently neither corresponds to the needs of a transforming and modernizing Georgian state, nor to the demands and expectations of its people. While academic assessments of transitions processes are indicating that a stable broadly excepted constitution is one of the preconditions for a successful transition towards democratic reform the Georgian reality checks differs. Newspaper "Batumelebi". Insert #3. more»

Regional Media in Adjara. Chance and Limit for the Democratic Development of the Region – January 11, 2010 - What is that the media in Adjara can do to support the democratic development process in the country and is there any possibility for the media to act as the controlling mechanism of the government in the region – these were the main issues discussed during the debates organized in Batumi on December 16th by the Heinrich Boell Foundation.
Article in newspaper "Batumelebi" in Georgian (download pdf) more»

We introduce you the 17th issue of Caucasus Analytical Digest (CAD). Please, see the list of articles of this issue:

• Georgia: The Interconnections between Democracy and Security by Alexander Cooley and Lincoln Mitchell, New York 
• The Political System of Armenia: Form and Content by David Petrosyan, Yerevan
• Comparing Azeri Attitudes toward Political Participation in Azerbaijan and Georgia by Joshua Noonan, Azerbaijan and Georgia Fulbright Fellow ’09–’10

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July 14, 2009 - After the Prague Summit of May 2009 the relationship between the EU and its eastern neighbour countries have entered new grounds. The Eastern Partnership´s agenda launches closer cooperation and an enhanced vision towards democratization in the region.

• Eastern Partnership: Towards Civil Society Forum
• Beyond zero-sum thinking in the EU’s Eastern Partnership
• Declaration of the Prague Eastern Partnership Summit

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The Reform of the European Neighborhood Policy – The present paper examines the actual implementation of the Action Plan as an ENP instrument in terms of both its content and its institutional framework following the lessons learned from the experience of Ukraine. It assesses new ENP instruments that have been introduced during the EU presidencies of Finland and Germany (2006-2007) under the ENP Plus proposal, especially when it comes to the strengthened sector policy dialogue and prospects for the accession of ENP countries to European Community Programmes and Agencies.
download pdf (80 pages, 575 KB) Alexander Duleba, Lucia Najšlová, Vladimír Benč, Vladimír Bilčík more»

Yerevan-based Analytical Centre on Globalization and Regional Cooperation (ACGRC) organized three one-day seminars in regions of Armenia: Vanadzor, Gyumri and Yeghegnadzor, with support from the South Caucasus Regional Office of the Heinrich Boell Foundation.

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Football diplomacy and beyond – A breakthrough in Turkish Armenian relations

What would an opening mean for the two countries? What has made the rapprochement possible? How have political leaders handled the delicate process? What are the implications for the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh? How will Azerbaijan react? What new prospects open for relations between Europe and the South Caucasus, or between Turkey and the rest of Europe?

This dossier combines expert analysis and interviews with political leaders to give the latest insight into a complex region, and how conflicts can be peacefully overcome.

Ulrike Duffner (HBF Turkey), Iris Kempe (HBF South Caucasus) more»