GEORGIAN MPS SLAM INITIATIVE TO INVITE SECESSIONIST LEADERS AT PACE

Civil Georgia
Jan 23 2008
Georgia

The Georgian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of
Europe said it was strongly against of inviting secessionist leaders
of Abkhazia and South Ossetia to PACE session.

The Georgian televisions reported on January 23 that the initiative
to invite the Abkhaz and South Ossetian leaders was pushed for by
the Armenian delegation and supported by Russia. The latter has for
several times previously tried to convince the UN Security Council
also to invite the secessionist leaders to deliver their message to
the international community, but attempts were foiled by Georgia’s
western allies.

The Tbilisi-based Mze TV reported on January 23 that Terry Davis,
Secretary General of the Council of Europe, "shares the initiative
about inviting de facto leaders to Council of Europe. The Council of
Europe Secretary General states that it is favorable to personally
listen to arguments put forth by de facto leaders in order to have
a better impression of the matter."

Then the TV station aired remarks by Terry Davis, who was speaking
with Georgian journalists in Strasbourg, on a sideline of the PACE
winter session. Terry Davis, at least according to the translation as
reported by Mze TV, said: "As far as this initiative [about inviting
secessionist leaders] is concerned, all forms of a dialogue should be
used for resolving these conflicts. Details still need to be agreed."

"Inviting them [secessionist leaders] here is ludicrous," Levan
Berdzenishvili, a lawmaker from opposition Republican Party and member
of Georgia’s delegation to PACE, said. "Armenian delegation is not
correct when pushing for this initiative. It should not happen if of
course there is no consent of the Georgian authorities. There is no
disagreement between the [Georgian] opposition and the authorities
over this issue."

"This is not the first case when such an initiative has been pushed
for," MP Nino Nakashidze, a lawmaker from the ruling party and a
member of the Georgian delegation to PACE, said. "I think initiative
of this kind is just a provocation."