Soon it will be 12 years since Russia recognized Abkhazia’s independence. Under Russia’s pressure, Abkhazia was subsequently recognized by Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru, Syria, as well as two island states—Tuvalu and Vanuatu; however, the latter two countries later annulled their recognition.

“Accent” continues its series of mini-surveys and this time asked citizens of Georgia for their views on Abkhazia, its 12-year “independence,” and prospects.

These polls, of course, do not claim to be serious sociological research, but the answers of a random selection of respondents of different ages, nationalities, professions, social status, and experience will provide a certain picture of the sentiments among the population living in territory controlled by Georgia’s central authorities.

Elene, 25, programmer: I think we can speak only of the illusion of independence and of hopelessness. Not to mention freedom (this is an even more complex and labor-intensive issue, dependent on many circumstances). The population of Abkhazia must ask itself how it wants to live, then look at Russia—a country where the authorities have effectively legalized disappearances, torture, and the killing of dissenting citizens—and then ask themselves again: will Russia ever give Abkhazians the life they want?

Nene, 21, student: I have relatives in Abkhazia. Just imagine—I met my cousin via the internet, and in person we still have not met; she cannot cross over here and says that “it will be unsafe upon return”—what a nightmare! In that closed space she sees no future and really wants to break out to Europe. Now we are trying to sort out documents for her—let’s see what happens. The coronavirus pandemic has made everything even more complicated.

Giorgi, 38, engineer: For me, Russia’s “strategic partnership” is nothing but cynicism. There is no need to look far—just look at our neighbors: Russia is considered Armenia’s strategic partner; Armenia, in turn, considers neighboring Azerbaijan its enemy and main challenge; and Russia, under these conditions, sells expensive weapons every year to both… Well then—partnership, no words! Not to mention the arbitrariness of Russian soldiers…

Ledi, 40, teacher: A state is not just some territory, is it? A state is responsibility toward the people living on that territory; the state is those people themselves. And what do people need? The protection of their rights in all areas. Now let us look at our reality. The main thing that has happened for us—in Georgia, in my view—is mental liberation from Russia, or if not full liberation yet, then at least we are clearly on that path. This was shown by “Gavrilov Night” [a mass protest on Rustaveli Avenue after the visit of Russian MP Gavrilov to the Georgian parliament in June 2019]. People realized their own value, the power of their voice, and began fighting for their rights and freedoms. People see prospects and understand that if there is unity, it makes sense to fight for change—they have hope for the future. That is how ruling forces in this country changed and will continue to change. Now look at Russia and what is happening there: Putin is preparing to rule until 2036, acting harshly—without even caring to create for citizens the illusion of even superficial changes! And they will care about the future of Abkhaz youth?!

Amiran, 50, mechanic: As far as I know from the media, most of the Abkhaz budget consists of Russian subsidies. That is a complete catastrophe and absolute dependence on Russia: when salaries, pensions, benefits, etc. are issued by Russia, it means that the жизненная артерия is in its hands. I recall the 1990s, when our ministers were appointed from Moscow. Even in that period, when we were completely dependent on Russia, were its slaves, it could not even tolerate one oil pipeline (Baku–Ceyhan) and organized an assassination attempt against President Shevardnadze. Why? Because something was done independently of Russia—Georgia had an alternative economic line. I don’t know what the political reality in Abkhazia is today, but judging by our experience and the experience of neighboring countries, it is not hard to imagine.

Emilia, 33, designer: As far as I know, in Abkhazia people are very concerned about assimilation with Russia, the issue of preserving the language. I don’t know how accurate my information is, but I heard that fewer people speak Abkhaz. I wonder, is the spoken language in state institutions there Russian? If yes, that is ужас…

Givi, 59, farmer: In Georgia, when certain financial resources are allocated by the EU or individual Western countries, the target is mainly reforms in various spheres—improving something: agriculture, for example, or the functioning of state institutions, etc. Even I—a regular citizen—received a grant to create my own family farm, introduce new methods, employ other citizens, and later our goal is European markets. I want to say that Western assistance reached me—a regular citizen—without any connections or patronage. And that is the main difference between the West and corrupt Russia. A partner tells us, “develop, and I will help you with that.” But Russia only orders: “sit in the swamp, keep quiet—and then I won’t touch you.” I came to this conclusion from personal experience.

Temo, 23, student: I don’t know what is happening in Abkhazia, how people live there. Only sometimes I learn information from the media and I do not have the full picture. However, considering how ordinary citizens live in Russia itself (and I know this from many stories of tourists who come here and people who moved to live with us), as well as what is happening around the world in Russia’s partner countries, and what was going on here in the 1990s (total corruption, complete hopelessness, etc.), I can imagine what Russia gives Abkhazia. It is clear that Russia is a nuclear power trying to frighten everyone with that; it is trying to strangle us too. But what does its strength give an ordinary citizen—what does Russia give him personally, when life is one and they take away his chance to live it normally! That is why I do not want to communicate with Russia—besides the fact that it also tries to crush us. In my view, there is simply no future there.

Elene, 20, student: I don’t remember Russia investing money in good deeds. If someone in Georgia still talks about ties with Russia, they say it either out of fear or because of money. Wherever Russian money appears, they try to incite hatred—either among citizens or toward the West; they try to force people to live in fear, kill their belief in themselves, and compel them to inaction. That is what, in my view, happens when you let Russia into your home—constant quarrels, chaos, hatred… Abkhazians should think about this.

David, 19, student: When recently criticism came from the West and forced our authorities to make concessions [to Georgian citizens—ed.], Russia loudly shouted, “they are puppets of the West.” But I think that the West then supported me personally and the other citizens who were outraged—first by Mr. Gavrilov’s arrival here, and then by the fact that our authorities simply deceived all of us. I personally was so offended that I was ready to go out to all the protests. And our Western partners clearly told the gentlemen in power: “if you want to be with us, then play by democratic rules, respect the will of the people and the promises you made to them.” So, in my view, the West then supported every citizen of Georgia and stood up to defend our rights. That is how I would explain it to Abkhazians and I would tell them: this is what partnership with the West gives us, and this is how it differs from their partner Russia, which first destroys and then forces you to endure humiliation and lick its boot.

Diana Museliani

The material was prepared within the framework of a joint project of the news agency “Accent” and the non-governmental organization GRASS, implemented with the financial support of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Georgia.