GEORGIA: LIFE ON THE BRINK IN GALI

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 TBILISI 001745 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/21/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM MARR RS GG SUBJECT: GEORGIA: LIFE ON THE BRINK IN GALI REF: A. TBILISI 1644 ¶B. TBILISI 1131 ¶C. TBILISI 0321 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. Kent Logsdon for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. A September 11 trip into Abkhazia confirmed many concerns about the marginal existence facing ethnic Georgian residents of Gali. Emboffs observed decrepit housing, execrable roads, collapsing schools, insufficient health care facilities, horse-drawn carts, and insect-threatened hazelnut trees. Local residents said they generally cross the administrative boundary line into undisputed Georgia for health care and other needs, but it was becoming more difficult to do so. Emboffs heard reports of extortion and other pressure, but most local residents resisted answering questions on those issues. According to administrators from one Gali school, the Abkhaz influence remained limited, but seems likely to increase. Russian tent encampments and forces, and a few Abkhaz forces, were visible in the villages; locals said the Russians generally keep to themselves, but a newly arrived construction brigade was about to begin constructing permanent housing. Despite the difficulties, most locals, including many internally displaced persons who have returned, seem to want to stay, although young people who have better prospects elsewhere often move on. The local authorities seem to have little motivation to support development or protect the residents. End summary. ENTERING ABKHAZIA ¶2. (SBU) For only the third time since the August 2008 war, U.S. government employees received permission from the de facto authorities to enter Abkhazia (see refs B, C). With the departure of UNOMIG, UNHCR submitted the request to the de facto authorities and made arrangements for the visit. Previously, UNOMIG would submit a request to the de facto authorities, receive a letter of permission (or a rejection), and then would escort the traveler in a UNOMIG vehicle (either car or helicopter) into Abkhazia. Upon arrival at the boundary, Abkhaz officials would inspect the permission letter, make a telephone call to confirm, then allow passage. This time, UNHCR submitted the letter, received permission, but learned the de factos now require travelers to travel to Sukhumi to receive an Abkhaz "visa." Traveling in a UNHCR car, emboffs crossed the Rukhi bridge, and followed the same procedure at the boundary as before; they then had to travel all the way to Sukhumi, however, to receive their "visa" from the de facto foreign ministry. They then returned to Gali for the main part of the trip. THE SITUATION IN GALI ¶3. (SBU) The aspect of life in Gali most immediately and glaringly apparent to a visitor is the appalling state of the roads. The longest stretch the main road extends without massive road damage is perhaps a couple hundred yards. Although roads in northern Abkhazia are not in great shape, they are in considerably better repair than those in Gali. The roads in the villages, off the main road to Sukhumi, are even worse, with gaping holes every few yards. Although UNHCR's four-wheel-drive SUV handled the rough spots well enough, the horse-drawn carts and old Zhiguli sedans the locals use likely encounter major difficulties. ¶4. (SBU) The second aspect of life in Gali that a visitor notices is the sad state of housing. Many structures have Qnotices is the sad state of housing. Many structures have long been abandoned, with crumbled walls and trees growing out of missing rooftops; others are occupied, but in a bad state of repair. Some are in good shape, although even those often use salvaged and mismatched materials. Western Georgia is typically known for having separate family homes of fairly generous proportions compared to the rest of Georgia, but many plots in Gali have very small shacks that could only have one or two small rooms. One family that is now receiving assistance from the Danish Refugee Council to build a new home has been living in such a shack since the 1990s, because it could not afford to renovate an existing larger structure or build a new one. Many homes do have well-tended agricultural plots surrounding them, which often provide the primary income. ¶5. (C) When asked about social services, local families complained that the health care provided locally is very limited. In the past, when they needed quality care, they TBILISI 00001745 002 OF 004 crossed the administrative boundary line to seek care in Zugdidi, but a number of families said that has become more difficult with the increased restrictions on crossing the boundary. One older woman said she would likely have to use the hospital in Gali, but expressed fear that she would not receive the care she needed there. A clinic in Nabakevi, established under a donor-funded assistance program to provide care for the entire village, consists of one renovated room, the size of an office, with one bed and a small chest of medicine. The room is in the local school, because no other public building was in sufficiently good condition to house the clinic. Patients often wait until after the school day ends to go, because they are embarrassed to visit when the students might see them. ¶6. (C) Local families expressed concerns about local schools. In response to a question about the quality of education his children were receiving, one father said "What can you expect?" with a look of resignation. The school in Nabakevi that housed the clinic suffered from rotting ceilings, buckled and crumbling floors, unpainted rooms, and individual wood stoves in classrooms for heat in the winter -- and it was described by UNHCR staff as one of the nicest schools in Gali. Besides the clinic, it did have one other renovated room -- the size of a small classroom -- with books, toys, and computers (although no internet connection),which served as a community center, again funded by outside donors. One classroom had recently received new desks, which stood in marked contrast to the room itself. The school representatives said all schools were supposed to have received new teacher desks and other furniture, and schools in northern Abkhazia did, but those in Gali were still waiting. ¶7. (C) School representatives explained that this was one of the schools that had permission from the de facto authorities to teach in Georgian, although even it was prohibited from providing instruction on history and geography in Georgian; an Abkhaz teacher was sent to the school to teach those subjects in Russian. That teacher was recently called away to work on the campaign for December's "presidential" election, however, so at the moment the school had no Abkhaz teacher. Although in prior years the school was able to provide Georgian history and geography instruction unofficially, the director said that this year local Abkhaz officials issued a strict and unambiguous prohibition. One of the school's halls featured a faded map of Georgia painted on the wall, with place names in Georgian; although the school's director said they would bring the original artist back to repaint the map if they received additional support, UNHCR staff expressed skepticism they would be allowed to do so. The representatives explained that teachers could only receive a salary if they had an Abkhaz "passport," so Georgian-language teachers generally relied on income they received outside Abkhazia -- but the increasingly strict boundary regime was making it much more difficult for them to move back and forth. ¶8. (C) All of the families emboffs met depend on hazelnuts as their primary source of income, with the profits from the fall harvest needed to last the whole year. The family plots looked well-tended, and they must produce, because most Qlooked well-tended, and they must produce, because most families would otherwise have no significant income. One family patriarch explained, however, that those profits do not quite cover the whole year, with the money running out well before the next year's harvest comes in. Locals noted that this year the crop was threatened by the "American worm," a kind of caterpillar, which eats the leaves of the hazelnut trees. UNHCR staff explained that the pest has been a problem for years, and donors have in the past funded a pesticide to respond, but the locals do not always use it properly, and in any case no such funding is currently available. Classed as IDPs by the Georgian government, ethnic Georgians are also entitled to a stipend of 28 lari (about $17) a month, but this must be collected outside Abkhazia. Furthermore, limitations on movements, along with the frequent requirement to pay a bribe to cross, are making it both harder and less cost-effective to collect that stipend. Small businesses seemed few and far between. Emboffs visited one brand-new, donor-funded beauty salon in Nabakevi, located in a nicely renovated room of a dilapidated building. Although clean and well-appointed, the shop had no customers when emboffs visited -- although the owner said business, at three lari ($2) a haircut, was fine. SECURITY THREATS JUST BENEATH THE SURFACE TBILISI 00001745 003 OF 004 ¶9. (C) UNHCR staff and a Danish Refugee Council expatriate working on house renovation projects explained that the time of the hazelnut harvest was the season for extortion by local gangs. As locals sell their nuts, organized groups make the rounds of the villages and demand a certain percentage of the take, with the threat of violent retribution if cooperation is refused. One UNHCR staff member, who is himself from Gali and still resident there, explained that the amount of income they lose stretches their already subsistence-level annual budget even tighter. When asked about the issue, local residents looked uncomfortable and did not answer. ¶10. (C) The same UNHCR staff member, who is 25, related a recent incident in which local Abkhaz law enforcement officials stopped him while driving his personal vehicle and threatened to conscript him into the Abkhaz forces. He replied that he had already served in the Georgian military (he explained to us that he had not actually served, but rather taken general military courses while enrolled in university in Tbilisi). This comment enraged the Abkhaz, who threatened to take him into custody as a traitor, but he managed to buy his release with a generous bribe. A UNHCR expat employee, surprised to be hearing the story for the first time, said he should report the incident to his security officer, so that the office could watch for patterns of such incidents and, if necessary, raise it and any other related problems with the de facto authorities. The staff member replied that raising it would be useless, because to a large extent he had to take care of himself, and no one -- not even a UN agency -- was in a position to protect him in Gali. ¶11. (C) The same staffer also explained that, of his several friends from Gali who had gone to Tbilisi for university, few had returned. He said they generally found more opportunities in Tbilisi. Although he trained as an English teacher, he himself has worked for UNHCR and before that for another international organization. He has applied for an Abkhaz "passport," not because he feels any loyalty to the de facto regime or wants to lose his Georgian citizenship, but because having the local document will be useful in everyday life. Although his UN ID card gives him considerably greater freedom than other residents enjoy -- in particular, it allows him to cross the boundary without difficulty -- he still sees benefit in having the local document. He did not expect to receive it anytime soon, however. RUSSIAN FORCES: SETTLING IN ¶12. (C) While driving to one of the housing projects in Nabakevi, the driver took a slight detour because of an especially difficult pothole and drove right past a Russian encampment, which UNHCR staff said was for the Russian Border Guards. Located several hundred yards from the administrative boundary, the camp consisted of 10-15 large tents; no people were visible. The family receiving the housing assistance, whose plot was located only a few hundred yards from the camp, said the Russians generally keep to themselves and cause them no trouble. The father added that recently a construction brigade had arrived at the camp in order to begin building more permanent housing for the Russians in the same basic location. While driving back QRussians in the same basic location. While driving back through the center of Nabakevi, emboffs saw three troop trucks carrying Russian forces, although it was not clear if they were Border Guards or soldiers; UNHCR staff thought they were Border Guards. A few individuals were visiting local shops on the street. The UNHCR driver identified a couple other figures in camouflage fatigues as Abkhaz forces, although another staffer said few members of the Abkhaz military were currently based so close to the boundary. ¶13. (C) Another, somewhat larger Russian encampment (15-20 tents, with what looked like a larger command tent and a communication truck set up with antennas) was located at the edge of Gali, on the main road toward Sukhumi, across from an Abkhaz checkpoint. UNHCR staff described this one as Russian Army. An armed sentry sat on the outer gate, observing passing traffic. In Sukhumi, two billboards expressed appreciation for Russia's role in Abkhazia: one, containing images of Russian soldiers, read "The Russian Federation -- Guarantee of Peace and Stability in the Caucasus," while the other, showing the Russian and Abkhaz flags, read "The Recognition of Abkhazia's Independence -- Historical Justice." COMMENT: WHY DO THESE NEGLECTED, DEFENSELESS PEOPLE STAY? ¶14. (C) The overwhelming impression one receives while TBILISI 00001745 004 OF 004 visiting Gali is the vulnerability of the local population. They face a wide range of development needs, from agricultural assistance, infrastructure construction, income generation, education and health care to a long-term development strategy. With the exception of a few donor-funded programs, however, no oe is trying to fill those needs, because the de jure government has no real authority to do so, and the de facto government has no interest in doing so. For the same reason, no one is providing basic security for the population; they face direct physical threats from individuals and groups who seem to operate with complete impunity. Although the presence of the Russian Border Guards may have improved security along the boundary, that impact does not extend much beyond the boundary; the Russians still leave the administration of the region to the Abkhaz. Furthermore, the Russians' increasingly strict regime at the boundary is making the lives of the local population more difficult. Nevertheless, the local population clearly, if surprisingly, believes it is still worth staying. With the possible exception of well educated young people, there is no evidence to suggest an imminent new exodus into undisputed Georgia. Recent changes, however -- the departure of UNOMIG, gradually increasing pressure on schools, and especially the increasingly strict boundary regime -- will make it harder than ever to choose to stay home. LOGSDON