OPEN LETTER TO PETER SEMNEBY

Lragir.am
Monday, 30 November, 2009

Open letter to Peter Semneby, EU Special Representative to the South
Caucasus countries, from the "Yerkir" Union of NGOs for Repatriation
and Settlement

Dear Mr. Semneby,

In the interview published in the Russian daily newspaper "Vremya
Novostey" on November 2, 2009 you, among other issues, touched upon
the problems of ethnic minorities of Georgia and, in that context, the
problems of the Javakheti Armenians, making the following observation:
‘The issues of national minorities in Georgia are important. We must
pay more attention to them, than we – on our part, and the Georgian
authorities – on theirs used to. This is a difficult issue. … The
problems there are largely social; those are problems of economic
development."

The very fact of your statement can be considered as positive,
even if it is only viewed from the standpoint of public recognition
of the existing problem by such a high-ranking official of the
European Union. However, to what extent does it reflect the real
situation, reducing the problems of Javakheti Armenians to only their
socio-economic component?

Of course, the socio-economic component is present in the complex of
the problems of the Javakheti Armenians, but it does not occupy the
central and decisive position. The Armenian population of Georgia,
and the part, compactly inhabiting the south-western regions of the
country in particular, suffers from violation of their political,
civil, cultural, educational and religious rights, the rights that
are guaranteed by numerous international obligations undertaken by
Georgia and aimed at protection of ethnic minorities.

The main problems facing the Georgian and the Javakheti Armenians can
be summed up as follows: The Armenian population is disproportionately
represented in the administrative and governing bodies of the regions
of their compact residence; The Georgian authorities impose mandatory
legislative and administrative measures to compel the minorities in
the places of their compact residence to use exclusively the Georgian
language in all spheres of public life, although the vast majority
of the Javakheti Armenians by objective circumstances do not speak
the language of the titular nation; The Armenian Apostolic Church in
Georgia has no legal status, and the Georgian authorities refuse to
return to it the Armenian temples, confiscated during the Soviet era.

The very fact that you avoided mentioning in your interview
the existence of these issues, which are far from being only
socio-economic, becomes even more bizarre, considering the fact that
numerous reputable international organizations have addressed the
issue of discriminatory policy implemented by the Georgian authorities
towards the ethnic minorities in Georgia.

Thus, for example, the UN Human Rights Committee in its recommendations
adopted on October 16, 2007, proposes that the Georgian authorities
take steps to ensure freedom and equality of religion. The Committee
recommends that the Georgian authorities solve the problem of
restitution of the property, confiscated during the Soviet era to the
religious minorities. The Committee, expressing concern about the low
level of political representation of minorities, suggests that the
Georgian authorities implement measures to eliminate discrimination on
the basis of language. To this end, the Committee proposes to consider
the possibility of allowing minorities to use their own language
at the level of local government and administration and to take all
appropriate measures to ensure adequate political representation and
political participation of ethnic minorities.

Serious shortcomings regarding the compliance of Georgia with
the European Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities were reflected in the report submitted in spring 2009
by the Advisory Committee of the Council of Europe. The Advisory
Committee recommends that the Georgian authorities make sure that the
policy of promoting the Georgian language is not detrimental to the
right of using the minority languages, mentioning that this requires
more resolute measures reflected both in law and in practice. The
experts of the Council of Europe, noting that national minorities
are underrepresented in the country’s political, cultural, social and
economic life, recommend that the Georgian authorities take vigorous
measures to remove legislative and practical obstacles the national
minorities come across, so that they can participate in the elected
bodies and in the executive, and work in the public service.

In addition to the above, authoritative international organizations
in 2005-2009, the Public Defender of Georgia, a number of Western
countries and international organizations in their respective reports
and statements touched upon the various manifestations of the policy
of violation of the rights of the Armenian minority of Georgia,
expressing their concern about these facts.

The President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan in his speech on September
1, 2009 also addressed the issues of concern of the Georgian and
Javakheti Armenians stating in particular that the logic of the
policy towards Javakhk should rest on the premise of "integration
without assimilation", and that the recognition of the Armenian as a
regional language, the registration of the Armenian Apostolic Church,
the steps undertaken to protect the Armenian monuments in Georgia
will only strengthen the Armenian-Georgian friendship and enhance
the atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding.

However, the Georgian authorities ignore the recommendations of the
international community and continue implementing a discriminatory
policy towards the Javakheti Armenians. Moreover, in recent years this
policy has achieved the level of repressions against the Javakheti
political activists through law enforcement agencies and judicial
authorities. During the period of 2007-2009 as a result of direct
and indirect pressure from the power structures of Georgia dozens
of political activists emigrated from Javakheti, many were tried for
fabricated criminal charges, some of them ‘bought’ their freedom at
the cost of admission of guilt in their alleged ‘crimes’, others were
tried in absentia and sentenced to various prison terms.

On July 21, 2008 the Georgian Special Forces stormed the house and the
office of the prominent Javakheti political activist Vahagn Chakhalyan,
‘found’ weapons there and on this basis immediately arrested him
as well as his father and his under-age brother. Later on Vahagn
Chakhalyan was charged with ‘organizing and active participation in
activities that disrupt public order’ and ‘hooliganism’- charges
solely based on his political activities in 2005-2006, when the
Armenian population through demonstrations and protests put forth
their legitimate claims to honor their linguistic and educational,
socio-cultural and religious rights.

On April 7, 2009, as a result of proceedings accompanied by flagrant
violations, the Javakheti political activist was sentenced to 10
years’ imprisonment in the Court of First Instance. On October 30,
2009 the Court of Appeals upheld the verdict intact.

This retaliatory act by the Georgian authorities against Vahagn
Chakhalyan has caused wide public resonance in Armenia and in the
Diaspora. A number of Armenian non-governmental organizations,
international human rights institutions, European parliamentarians
have adopted statements and taken other steps aimed at protection
of the rights of the Javakheti Armenian activist. On April 14, 2009
the Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations of France held a
protest demonstration before the Georgian Embassy in Paris against
this unjust sentence; two days after this action Vahagn Chakhalyan
was severely beaten in prison.

Meanwhile, Georgia is a member of the ‘The European Neighborhood
Policy’ and ‘Eastern Partnership" EU programs and through them the
country receives substantial financial assistance. At the same time
Georgia openly violates the basic human rights and the rights of ethnic
minorities. Under the circumstances, by ignoring the existing problems
the EU actually authorizes the Georgian authorities to continue their
discriminatory policy towards their ethnic minorities, authorizes new
manifestations of police repressions in the Armenian-populated areas,
and authorizes new irresponsible acts that deepen day by day the
mood of fear, frustration and alienation in the Armenian-populated
regions of Georgia. Thus, the European Union involuntarily assumes
the role of an accomplice of the Georgian authorities, sharing the
responsibility for a possible aggravation of the situation.

Dear Mr. Semneby,

Based on abovementioned facts, we call upon You to take more
decisive and effective stance in this issue in order to ‘explain’
to the Georgian authorities that the communication with the Armenian
citizens of their country from the position of rude force, police
repression and deprivation of rights leads to a deadlock, and only
through recognition, effective protection and enjoyment of fundamental
rights and freedoms of individuals and minorities, as well as the
actual planting of democratic procedures is it possible to create
stable guarantees for the development of the country.

We firmly believe, that only by exercising principled position with
respect to these issues is it possible to help the Georgian authorities
in creating a functioning democratic system, which will be the real
guarantee of stability for the country and the entire South Caucasus
region as a whole.