Tag Archives: Georgia

Currencies: Kazakh tenge, Azerbaijani manat, Georgian lari

FEB. 10 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Azerbaijani manat and the Georgian lari jumped by 6.6% and 5.7% in the week to Feb. 9, a sharp jolt against their predominantly downward trajectories.

The manat was valued at 1.82/$1 on Feb. 9, a one month high. The lari was valued at 2.63/$1, a two- month high.

In Baku, some currency analysts said that this was the start of a realignment of the national currency that would see it appreciate back up to around 1.5/$1, a level not seen since mid-2016. They argued that the currency was undervalued and that as oil prices continue to rise, even slightly, and the economy improves, the manat will strengthen.

Other analysts are more cautious and have said that a multi- million dollar one-off transfer from Azerbaijan’s state oil fund to the government has boosted the value of the manat temporarily and that the decline will continue in the longer term.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)

Georgia tempts rebel areas with EU visa-free access

TBILISI, FEB. 6 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgia was accused of baiting its rebel regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia with its recently won visa-free access to the European Union.

The row is a reminder to the EU that closer ties with Georgia come with attachments to the Georgia Russia stand-off over the two Georgian breakaway states. Georgia and Russia fought a brief war over the two regions less than a decade ago which ended in Russian soldiers temporarily occupying part of Georgia and the Kremlin recognising both South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent.

In a speech shortly after the Euro- pean Parliament voted to approve 90-day visa-free access to Georgia and Ukraine to the 26-nation Schengen Area, Georgian PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili said that people living in the breakaway regions could also enjoy the easier access to the EU if they reapplied for a Georgian passport.

“We are happy that our Abkhazian and Ossetian citizens will join us in enjoying every benefit offered by close relations with Europe,” he said. The rebel regions were not amused and said Mr Kvirikashvili was trying to leverage political capital out of the European Parliament vote by trying to persuade people living in South Ossetia and Abkhazia to move back to Georgia. Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgian president from 2004 until 2013, deployed similar sweetener tactics, by building public swimming pools next to South Ossetia and holding rock concerts within earshot of Tskhinvali, its capital.

The authorities in Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast, released a statement.

“It is obvious that after a complete failure of the idea of the so-called neutral passports, the Georgian government decided to use another type of bait in the form of visa liberalization for citizens of the Republic of Abkhazia. It is clear that the Georgian government’s attempt will fail,” it said.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)

Inflation starts rising in Georgia

FEB. 3 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Inflation in Georgia has started to pick up, as the Central Bank predicted. In January, prices in Georgia were 2.9% higher than they were in December, the state’s statistics service said. Annualised inflation in January 2017 measured 3.9%. In January, the Georgian Central Bank raised interest rates because it said that inflation was rising.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)

Four transgender women attacked in Georgian nightclub

TBILISI, FEB. 8 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — An alleged gang of men attacked four transgender women in a nightclub just off Rustaveli, the main street in Tbilisi, once again triggering fears of a lack of acceptance in Georgia for alternative life- styles.

Transgender women have been targeted for attacks in the past couple of years, with several being killed.

The day before the latest attack a man was sent to prison for 13 years for killing a transgender woman in 2016.

But other social groups have also been attacked, including vegetarians, homosexuals and ethnic minorities.

Georgia wants to, ultimately, join the European Union but these hate crimes are likely to play against it. Georgia is renowned for having a deeply conservative society rooted in the Georgian Orthodox Church.

The Church, an important focal point for ordinary Georgians and their politicians, has campaigned against gay rights and has pushed for the ruling Georgian Dream coalition government to change the government to enshrine marriage between a man and a woman.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)

Georgia to change breakaway region’s name

FEB. 7 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — In a jibe at Georgia’s central government, the rebel authorities in the Georgian breakaway region of South Ossetia called a referendum on April 9 to vote to rename the region South Ossetia-Alania. Alania is the semi-mythical term for the combined region of North and South Ossetia. North Ossetia lies inside Russia, which the South Ossetian rebels want to join. The Kremlin has recognised South Ossetia’s independence since a war with Georgia in 2008. Only staunch Russian allies have followed this lead.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)f

Georgian prosecutor investigates alleged pressuring of judges

FEB. 10 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgia’s Prosecutor-General launched an investigation into an alleged attempt to pressure two Supreme Court judges presiding over a case to decide the ownership of the Rustavi-2 television station. Rustavi-2 is Georgia’s most popular TV station. It is also firmly in opposition against the current Georgian Dream coalition government. The Prosecutor said that the two Supreme Court judges asked for the investigation after receiving SMSs and letters trying to pressure them into a result that would favour the government.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 316, published on Feb. 10 2017)

Georgia sends soldiers to support EU mission in Africa

JAN. 31 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgia sent a platoon of 30 soldiers to serve under a France-lead European Union mission in the Central African Republic. The Georgians’ main mission is to defend the EU mission’s base. This is the first deployment of Georgian soldiers to the Central African Republic for two years. Georgia uses its military as an extension of its foreign policy and has sent military support to missions linked to the EU and NATO, two Western institutions that it wants to join.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 315, published on Feb. 3 2017)

Georgian president gives amnesty to former MoD employees

JAN. 27 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili amnestied seven former defence ministry employees who had been imprisoned for seven years in 2014/15 for embezzlement. The case was high profile and lead to the resignation of Irakli Alasania as minister of defence. Mr Alasania had once been considered a high flyer member of the Georgian Dream party.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 315, published on Feb. 3 2017)

Hundreds protest in Tbilisi against job cuts by Georgia’s defence ministry

TBILISI, JAN. 30 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Since December, Georgia’s defence ministry has laid off several hundred civil servants and soldiers, a round of redundancies aimed at modernising the army and reducing costs.

The lay-offs have triggered protests including one on Jan. 30 when a few hundred people marched in Tbilisi.

Protesters said 1,750 civil servants and 340 soldiers have lost their jobs without any compensation. Another 209 officers quit their jobs voluntarily.

Elguja Urushadze, a former Lieutenant Colonel who used to teach at the military academy, told the Bulletin that he was fired without any notice.

“I served in the Georgian National Army since the very first days of its existence,” he said. “I have been teaching protection from weapons of mass destruction since 1991. I was on a work trip on the 12th of January when they called me and told me I was removed from office. On the papers, my last working day was the 11th of January.”

Georgia wants to join NATO and has supported its mission in Afghanistan. It also has a detachment of soldiers supporting an EU mission in the Central African Republic.

It said that as well as cutting costs, the so-called “Optimisation” process was needed to bring the Georgian army into line with its NATO allies.

“In 2016, 67% of the 670m lari ($250m) budget funds were calculated for salaries and social expenses and only 33% was spent on the military technique, ammunition and on other needs,” the defence ministry said. “NATO standards say that payroll and administrative expenses should make up 50-53% of budget funds.”

It also said that the reforms will save 32m lari, 5% of the total budget.

The protesters, though, said they will continue until they are properly compensated for their job losses.

David Nemsadze, a retired army officer and now a human rights worker specialising in military affairs said: “During the layoffs process, the working code was violated. The selection process was not transparent at all.”

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 315, published on Feb. 3 2017)

Major fire destroys shopping centre in Georgia capital

JAN. 30 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — A fire in Tbilisi destroyed the Children’s World and Gold Market shopping centre. Reports said that 31 fire-fighting units tackled the blaze, one of the biggest in Tbilisi. The shopping mall covered an area roughly the size of two football pitches. It is still unclear what caused the fire.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 315, published on Feb. 3 2017)