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Issue no: 873 • AUGUST 26 - 229,9, 2016 • PUBLISHEPUBLISHED TWICE WEEKLY PRICE: GEL 2.50

In this week’s issue... Government to Finalize Marriage Defi nition after Elections NEWS PAGE 2 Bombs & Who Planted Them

FOCUS ON THE CITY POLITICS PAGE 5 Mayor Narmania is called to account Ex-PM Ivanishvili for the cutting of trees in , refuses to quit PAGE 8 to Guest Host New TV Project

North Atlantic Council to Visit POLITICS PAGE 6 Asking for the Moon: Ogden in September on Common (Military) Sense

BY TAMAR SVANIDZE

he North Atlantic Council (NAC) will visit Georgia on September 7-8, Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kviri- SOCIETY PAGE 7 kashvili announced at a Tgovernment meeting on Wednesday. Exclusive Interview with The Council, which is chaired by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, will Olympic Champion in arrive on September 7 to attend a meet- ing of the NATO-Georgia Commission Weightlifting, Lasha in the capital Tbilisi as well as a one-to- one with Kvirikashvili. Talakhadze Continued on page 2 SPORTS PAGE 15 GEORGIA TODAY 2 NEWS AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 Government to Finalize Marriage Defi nition after Elections

BY THEA MORRISON

rime Minister of Georgia, Giorgi Kviri- kashvili, stated at the Cabinet Session on Wednesday that the Government will A constitutional countersign the President’s refusal to hold a national referendum that would constitutionallyP defi ne marriage as a union of a amendment on man and woman. However, he said the Cabinet disagrees with the arguments provided by the marriage defi nition will President. President of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, blocked the referendum bid on marriage defi nition be introduced after the on August 10, saying that Georgia's Civil Code already specifi es marriage as “a voluntary union October 8 of a man and woman” and adding that the country’s existing legislation bans any move to change the constitution through a referendum. Parliamentary elections According to the President, when 20 percent of Georgia’s territory is occupied and two regions Abkhazia and South Ossetia are recognized as independent states by Russia, holding a referendum will give additional legal arguments to the occupying powers. Kvirikashvili stated that the argu- ment that a referendum cannot be held due to the breach of territorial integrity of the coun- try remains disputable. “We fully share the desire of the initiators of the refer- endum that the civil marriage is a voluntary union of a man and a woman,” said the PM, adding that the ruling party (GD) was the fi rst initiator of the constitutional amendment. According to Kvirikashvili, due to the boycott of various political forces in the current parliament, the amendments have not been fi nalized. However, he noted that a ing to which striving towards Western civilization constitutional amendment on marriage defi nition implied legalization of the same-sex marriage is would be introduced “by all means” after the Octo- pure speculation. ber 8 Parliamentary elections. “Europe wants us the way we are, with our tra- The PM also underlined that the argument accord- ditional values,” he noted. The move to hold a referendum was fi rst brought up by an activist group led by Alexander Bregadze, Soso Manjavidze and Zviad Tomaradze, who gath- ered 200,000 votes and asked the Central Election Commission (CEC) to register their request for a referendum. The CEC sent the approved bid to the President, who rejected it and sent his order to the Prime Minister for countersignature. Europe wants us the The idea of constitutionally defi ning marriage as a union between a man and woman was fi rst raised way we are, with our by the ruling Georgian Dream coalition. A draft resolution on amending the constitution was not put to a vote in May 2016 during its fi rst reading traditional values due to a lack of quorum in the parliament. North Atlantic Council to Visit Georgia in September

Continued from page 1 democratic and economic reforms will also be addressed. This will be a very important visit. The “This showcases the North Atlantic Alliance‘s NAC is the main decision-making body in the NATO unparalleled support for Georgia,” Giorgi Kviri- alliance, hence this visit carries particular impor- kashvili said. tance," Kvirikashvili said. The NATO offi cials and Stoltenberg will also meet At the Warsaw Summit in early July, the Alliance Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili and Par- pledged to help support Georgia’s crisis manage- liamentary Chair David Usupashvili. ment capabilities and improvements in strategic The NATO-Georgian commission was fi rst launched communications, and said it would provide addi- in September 2008, less than a month after Russia tional aid for the development of Georgia’s air invaded Georgia in the fi ve-day August War. defense and surveillance capabilities. "During the visit, the Warsaw Summit results may During the visit, Stoltenberg is expected to deliver be discussed. The country's progress regarding a speech at the National Library. GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 NEWS 3 The Netherlands to Help Implementation of NATO-Georgia Substantial Package

South Ossetian Border Guards Seize Georgian Farmland

dents living in the village. The Georgian government fought three BY TAMAR SVANIDZE Offi cial Georgian and Dutch sides meet at the MFA Georgia The gunmen said the agricultural area wars against Russian-backed separatist was a part of the Russian-occupied forces in Abkhazia and South Ossetia South Ossetia region and therefore between 1991 and 2008. and know-how support to the planned eorgian farmworkers liv- under the jurisdiction of the separatist Formal relations between Tbilisi and BY STEVEN JONES Defense Institution Building School in ing near the contact line authorities in their self-declared capi- have been frozen since the Georgia, one of the aspects of SNGP. with the breakaway South tal Tskhinvali. Kremlin recognized South Ossetia and Throughout the notifi cation meeting, Ossetia region claim Rus- "My family has owned this land for Georgia’s other Russian-occupied region he Kingdom of the Neth- the parties discussed issues of bilateral sian border guards are years. Of course, this is Georgian terri- Abkhazia as independent states. erlands will make its own relations, as well as the progress blockingG their access to sections of tory and under the control of the central International law and the United contribution to the imple- achieved in the implementation of the farmland that lay on the Georgian side government. However, the occupants Nations continue to state that the regions mentation of the NATO- SNGP. of the contact like that separates the (Russians) came to us last year and said remain parts of Georgia. Georgia Substantial Pack- Deputy MFA Minister of Georgia, rebel region from the rest of Georgia. that part of my land, 6 hectares, was Russia continues to violate a 2008 ageT (SNGP), the Georgian Foreign David Dondua, thanked Mr. Douma for Georgian news agency Interpressnews within South Ossetia’s borders. I had ceasefi re agreement by maintaining a Ministry (MFA) says. The assistance, the Netherlands’ important contribu- reported that uniformed gunmen been working there throughout the year; massive military presence in both Abk- announced on August 24 by the Ambas- tion and expressed his hope for the appeared on the outskirts of the Gori I spent a lot of money, and now they hazia and South Ossetia by basing thou- sador of the Netherlands to Georgia, Dutch Government’s future support Municipality village of Sobisi and started are stealing my crops. They don’t let sands of occupation forces in the two Johannes Douma, involves fi nancial on Georgia’s EU Path. to harvest the crops of one of the resi- me enter the area,” he said. regions. GEORGIA TODAY 4 POLITICS AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 How About Just Making America Better?

tion with help from a nostalgic slogan: the global conditions that buoyed Amer- worship, community organizations, and “Make America great again.” Things are ica’s booming industrial economy no charities; the institutions that stand bad now and they were good before, so longer exist, and the era’s stifl ing social between families and the State, and in we should have more of the old and less conformity got old a long time ago. The Levin’s view the ones most capable of of the new. Before we ridicule Trump large factory has been replaced by the addressing the problems facing Ameri- and his supporters, however, we should tech startup. A single mass culture has ca’s fragmented society. By restoring admit that people on both ends of the given way to countless subcultures, horizontal bonds, Americans will be spectrum and from all walks of life are smaller groups of like-minded people better equipped to live fulfi lling, suc- fed up with what they see as a dysfunc- that often transcend local communities. cessful lives in an era when confi dence tional political system and a fl oundering The bargaining power of workers has in the federal government is historically economy. “Make America great again” been replaced by that of the almighty low. may belong to Mr. Trump, but simply consumer. And amidst all that decon- These ideas aren’t original, but Levin the word “again” does enough to explain solidation, the federal government has presents them with rare insight and pre- America’s current politics. Other politi- gotten bigger and more centralized. As cision. Even more so, he makes a com- cians are fi nding success with similar an ideological conservative with a pref- pelling case for why America should messages. Barack Obama, Hillary Clin- erence for bottom-up solutions, Levin wake from its nostalgia and instead make ton, and Bernie Sanders don’t share spots a contradiction. Rather than reform- the best of what the present has to offer. Trump’s longing for a whiter, more mas- ing public services to make them more In his view, there is a lot. Americans have culine era, but they often speak about local and more fl exible, and thus better more choices than their parents and an economic paradise lost. able to meet the needs of citizens in an grandparents even dreamed of, and the In The Fractured Republic: Renewing unbundled society, the Democratic Party country’s economy is still dynamic, if America’s Social Contract in the Age of is focused on fi nding top-down solutions much less secure. He focuses on build- Individualism, esteemed conservative to what they consider to be nationwide ing a better future, not longing for an writer Yuval Levin diagnoses nostalgia problems. idealized past. as a disease affl icting the Republican Levin’s solution is to accommodate This book also has shortcomings. Levin Party and the country. He fi nished writ- America’s deconsolidation—to “seek is insensitive to concerns about income ing it while Trump’s nomination still diffusing, individualist remedies for the inequality, and only briefl y mentions the sounded like an absurd fantasy, but his diseases most incident to a diffuse, indi- (understandable) reasons why many analysis has become only more relevant. vidualist society”—by relying on the Americans are averse to the kind of local- The Left wants to turn the clock back to principle of subsidiarity. That means ism he prescribes. Many minorities, for needed to remove artifi cial “barriers to 1965, and the Right wants it to be forever handing more power to the political example, see subsidiarity as paving the BY JOSEPH LARSEN progress” and let the individual reach 1981. In Levin’s words: “The Right wants bodies closest to the problems that gov- way for prejudiced local offi cials to deny his or her full potential. That kind of unmitigated economic individualism but ernment is working to solve. Examples them equal access to public services and message doesn’t resonate these days. a return to common moral norms. The include giving state and local govern- legal protections. As a social conserva- hen Ronald Reagan Many voters are cynical and pessimistic. Left wants unrestrained moral relativ- ments more control over how tax dollars tive, Levin takes for granted the justice won the presidency They see America as a country on a ism but economic consolidation. Both are spent, combatting soaring tuition and utility of the traditional norms that in 1980 and went on downward slide. They’d rather hide in will need to come to terms with some costs through deregulation rather than govern private morality. Still, he’s one to redefi ne American an idyllic past than leap into an exciting uncomfortable realities of twenty-fi rst by expanding federal student aid pro- of the few intellectuals from either party conservativism, his future. century America.” grams, and fi xing America’s failing pub- willing to take responsibility for Amer- Wmessage was hopeful. The country was That’s essentially the message promoted That starts with accepting that the lic schools by presenting parents with ica’s problems—and to admit that his in a temporary rut, but a brighter, better by Donald Trump, the man who won the post-war order is dead and gone, and more choices. It also means reviving party needs to undergo major reform in future was within reach. The State just Republican Party’s presidential nomina- admitting that it died for real reasons: mediating institutions such as places of order to become part of the solution. Welcome to Indian Restaurant

Sanjha Chulha Website www.sanjhachulha.ge Indian Restaurant Mail [email protected] Agmashenebeli Avenue, 130 Tbilisi 0112 Georgia

Mobile + 995-596-03-1313 + 995-596-56-1313 Phone +995-322-95-96-14 Skype: SANJHA.CHULHA Facebook: sanjha chulha Indian Cusine GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 POLITICS 5 Bombs & Who Planted Them

OP-ED BY ZAZA JGARKAVA

he briefi ng held last week by the State Security Ser- vice was like a thunderstorm on a clear sunny day. At a time when the population Tis busy meeting the political parties and discussing the ratings of the politicians, suddenly the Security Offi cer announced the foiling of a terrorist attack and the arrest of seven Georgian citizens who had been participating in it. More impor- tantly, at the end of the meeting that same person announced sensational information: to a journalist’s question about where the terrorist act was origi- nally planned, he answered – Ukraine. According to the map presented at the briefi ng, the terrorists aimed to blow up the gas pipeline near Saguramo village which transports Russian gas to Arme- nia. As for Ukraine, this country was named as the central place where the terrorist act was planned only because one of the detained suspects had visited the country often. The claim was fol- lowed by the expected political and judicial fuss, with the governmental and questions.” Expert Nodar Kharshiladze and Zebo, who were helping us, have storage place were given to the suspects ous threat, naturally, I have absolute trust oppositional experts offering diametri- thinks that the announcement made in been arrested in Georgia.” Friends of in Ukraine. However, the Georgian in it. There are specifi c circumstances cally opposed ideas about the unsuc- the Security Offi ce about the prevention Bagishvili said that he had really helped Dream government also has the exact and evidence and this is not just on the cessful attack. The experts supporting of the terrorist attack is closely linked the Georgians fi ghting in Ukraine by details of these points; so blaming level of assumptions. Further informa- the government have suspicions about with the pre-electoral campaign of the sending them warm clothes and that he Ukraine and the Georgian fi ghters needs tion about the connections and where the long term plans of the opposition, government. “This is a typical attempt was under the surveillance of the Geor- special justifi cation. the suspects were given the orders will while the oppositional ones point out of pre-electoral agitation; the govern- gian Special Services, who asked him to It was also revealed that one of the soon become public,” said Izoria. the lack of evidence and the possible ment will try to leave the impression it stop doing so. suspects is accused by the investigators But before the government releases pre-electoral intentions. discovered the plot. It is a cheap politi- Notably, the storage place for the of not only terrorism but also the abuse the announced information the court For instance, expert Mamuka Areshidze cal trick and is aimed at discrediting explosive device mentioned by the of granted power – this person is Levan has issued a two-month pretrial deten- believes that it is not proven that the political opponents,” said Kharshiladze. Security Forces is one of those secret Mamporia, an offi cer of the Poti Patrol tion and has scheduled the next hearing representatives of former government The day following the briefi ng, Geor- places which was created in different Police and a relative of the Minister of for October 10th. At that time Georgia now residing in Ukraine could be behind gian soldiers living in Ukraine responded. regions across Georgia on the order of Defense, Levan Izoria. Minister Izoria will already have a new government and this initiative. Areshidze told Commer- One of the members of the Georgian ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili in made a statement, though not about his whether this change will have infl uence sant that “there is no direct evidence National Legion fi ghting for the Ukrain- 2008-2009 for resistance to possible connection to the detained suspect, on the decision to be made on October supporting the idea that the order was ian government, Vano Nadiradze, wrote new attacks from Russia. Investigators “When the State Security Service makes 10th is hard to predict, since it all depends given in Ukraine. However, there are a facebook post saying “Irakli Bagishvili believe that the coordinates of this secret an announcement about avoiding a seri- on the government in power. GEORGIA TODAY 6 POLITICS AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 Poll Finds 48.3% of Georgians Disapprove of Current Government BY THEA MORRISON

eorgian TV network Rustavi 2 on Tuesday released the Ex-PM Ivanishvili to Guest results of a poll by German research institute GfK that showed that 48.3 percent Host New TV Project Gof respondents disapprove of the gov- ernment’s performance. “The TV show will start on September According to the survey, 10.5 percent BY THEA MORRISON AND 1 and be broadcast once a week from of respondents said they supported the NICHOLAS WALLER different regions of the country. We will current president, Giorgi Margvelashvili. invite local journalists who will be able Opposition party leader David Bakradze to ask questions. The fi nal show will be from the United National Movement eorgia’s oligarch former in Tbilisi,” said Peikrishvili, who added (UNM) received the second highest rat- Prime Minister Bidzina that the fi rst show would take place in ing, with 9.1 percent saying they’d vote Ivanishvili has announced the Adjara Region on the Black Sea. for him. that he plans to appear on A wildly eccentric Georgian business- Former President Mikheil Saakashvili earned 1.6 percent of the vote, and Nino like GD any more. a question-and-answer man who made his fortune in Russia in placed third, receiving 6.9 percent of Burjanadze’s staunchly pro-Russian "Any survey or discussion we have Gshow that will air on his GDS TV chan- the volatile post-Soviet privatization respondents’ vote. Former Defense Min- Democratic Movement was backed by with voters clearly shows that people nel. period of the 1990s, Ivanishvili briefl y ister and leader of the Free Democrats, only 1.4 percent of those asked. believe the Georgian Dream is a corrupt, Ivanishvili previously appeared on an served as prime minister from October Irakli Alasania, garnered 4.8 percent, 19 percent of respondents said they irresponsible government. People are analytical launched in March, but soon 2012 to November 2013. while 3.6 percent of respondents said remain undecided. willing to support us,” UNM member quit without explanation. He founded and later led the Georgian they support opera singer-turned-oppo- Participants in the survey named unem- Irakli Abesadze said. The new show’s co-producer, Mikheil Dream coalition to victory in the 2012 sition party leader Paata Burchuladze. ployment (47.4 percent), low wages and Responding to the fi ndings, Burchu- Peikrishvili, denied allegations that the parliamentary elections, ousting the Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili got poverty (13 percent), low pensions (7.6 ladze said the survey should help boost program will be used as a political plat- government of staunchly pro-Western just 3.0 percent. percent) and price increases (4.6 per- support for his party ahead of the upcom- form for Ivanishvili. former President Mikheil Saakashvili. When asked which political party they cent) as the country’s main problems. ing elections. “It will be part of GDS’ election cam- Ivanishvili voluntarily stepped down would vote for, 25.8 percent of those Several members of the ruling Geor- The survey was carried out from August paign programming. The former prime from his position after his hand-picked asked named the ruling party Georgian gian Dream party slammed the survey’s 3-18, with 2,200 Georgian citizens taking minister (Ivanishvili) will simply be one nominee for the presidency won the 2013 Dream as their top choice, just edging results, saying they do not correspond part in the questionnaire. of many participants,” Peikrishvili said. elections. out the UNM who were backed by 25.5 to the reality on the ground. Gesellschaft fur Konsumforschung, or Mirroring the marathon call-in shows In March 2012, Ivanishvili was ranked percent of respondents. "This is a deliberate attempt to distort GfK, is Germany’s largest research insti- of Russian President Vladimir Putin at number 153 in Forbes magazine's annual Burchuladze’s State for People coali- reality. We already know the facts. These tute, and the fourth largest market and Venezuela’s late President Hugo list of the world's richest billionaires, tion placed third with 6.9 percent of so-called statistics are a part of certain research organization in the world. Chavez, Ivanishvili will answer ques- with an estimated net worth of 6.4 bil- respondents’ votes. people’s fantasies,” Education Minister The GfK Group is an international mar- tions from journalists and viewers, while lion. He has since fallen to 298th place 3.7 percent of respondents supported Aleksandre Jejelava said. ket research organization providing ser- serving as a guest-host of the new TV on Forbes’ list but remains Georgia’s the Labour Party and 2.9 percent the According to the UNM, the survey is vices in the three sectors- Custom Research, program. richest person, worth USD 4.8 billion. Free Democrats; the Patriots Alliance realistic, and it shows that people do not Retail and Technology and Media. GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 SOCIETY 7 Asking for the Moon: Ogden on Common (Military) Sense

ing the military with the urgency of OP-ED BY TIM OGDEN The death of the two Georgian Frederick the Great with a wasp in his soldiers this week was utterly pants, but some fundamental issues still pointless on a number of levels. clearly remain. The two soldiers who terrible tragedy occurred Source: navytimes.com died were undertaking diving training this week when two Geor- at the time of their death, but in my gian soldiers undertaking opinion they had no business being in Special Forces training were the water to begin with. lost at sea during a diving It was apparently their fi rst time div- Aexercise. An investigation has been ing, and they were sent into the sea in launched into exactly what happened very choppy waters that any sensible while the bereaved families accuse the offi cer would prevent any inexperienced Ministry of Defense of negligence. troops from going into. That, surely, is Every year, a few soldiers across the common sense. However, I also see abso- world die in training (a British soldier lutely no need for military divers for from the Royal Regiment of Scotland Georgia in the fi rst place. While the was killed during a night-time live fi ring Georgian Army seems intent on copying exercise earlier this week) and as ter- everything American (including those rible as it is, in many regards it is to be awful uniforms, hats, and the style of expected. Training must be realistic to marching; come on, chaps, thumbs prepare the individual soldier for the pressed down, elbows locked, and sloped rigours and dangers of warfare and com- rifl es if you please), I can't for the life of bat, and with exercises involving live became aware of the incident the media called 'Endurance'. The near-impossi- cial Forces variety), there is always a me see the need for US Navy SEAL-style rounds and explosives being fi red and had a fi eld day. How could the Ministry bility of SAS Selection has caused some point to it. Chris Ryan would never have soldiers here, simply because Georgia thrown around, a certain number of of Defense let this man die in such a way courses to fi nish with no candidates been able to (or ever believed he could) has no navy to begin with. Besides which, accidents are inevitable. when the modern world has safety nets found to have made the grade (out of execute the longest behind-enemy-lines the handful of ships it retains now belongs Equally inevitably, civilians who have such as rescue helicopters and search- hundreds of men), but it has also given escape in the history of warfare had his to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and never done a day in uniform then become and-rescue teams? rise to the fi nest soldiers on the planet. training not been so insufferably tough, so if Georgia must have divers then they involved, and wag their heads over the The answer is as brutal as the exercise The examples of their expertise are end- and soldiers who calmly face combat shouldn't be anything to do with the brutal and harsh nature of military train- itself. The SAS is the world's foremost less, but most notably Argentine troops would crack under the pressure of their Army anyway. ing, apparently blind to the very obvious Special Forces unit on which all others of the Falklands War dubbed them 'super- fi rst baptism of fi re without the right That, then, is really about it; two point- truth that war is a brutal and harsh busi- have been based (including the USA's human', and years later during the Gulf preparation. less deaths in a training exercise for a ness and if a soldier is expected to sur- Delta Force), and the selection course War, Chris Ryan, an SAS trooper whose Yet the death of the two Georgian sol- pointless capability that the country can vive it then their training must prepare alone takes two years. The unit believes unit had been captured, was able to evade diers this week was utterly pointless on never use effectively. As a Georgian them adequately. A few years ago, a sol- in men being utterly independent and Iraqi soldiers and travel alone in the a number of levels. citizen, I'll happily vote for any party in dier attempting the selection course for takes only those troops who are capable desert for over 290 km with few supplies The lacklustre showing of the Georgian October's elections that irons out the Britain's Special Air Service died from of pushing themselves beyond their lim- to eventually reach Syria. Army in the 2008 war against Russia stupid and introduces some common exposure on a 40 mile march, alone in its; small wonder that the 40 mile march The point is, despite the savage nature caused both the Georgians themselves sense. However, I do rather feel like I'm the wilderness, and when the public all candidates must undertake is simply of military training (especially the Spe- and the Americans to set about reform- asking for the moon. GEORGIA TODAY 8 SOCIETY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016

No Agreement Reached Between Tbilisi Mayor and NGOs

offi cials and Narmania in attendance, BY THEA MORRISON where environmental activists and NGOs peppered Narmania with questions about an incident on Tbilisi’s Kazbegi Street, rotest rallies and a hunger which saw around 40 healthy trees cut strike at Tbilisi City Hall con- down on August 17. tinue as an agreement has yet The protestors demanded the ousters to be reached between Mayor of both Narmania and the Deputy Head David Narmania and Non- of the Ecology and Landscaping Service. GovernmentalP organizations (NGOs) Narmania refused to quit and insisted regarding environmental problems in that a decision about the site would be the capital city of 1.5 million people. made after the Prosecutor’s Offi ce fi n- A meeting was held between the two ishes its investigation into the incident. opposing City Council members, city “There is freedom of speech and expres-

sion in our country and no one can limit of the NGOs immediately walked out of Narmania issue orders to immediately it, so these people can continue their the meeting and vowed to continue their halt the illegal cutting down of trees protest,” stated Narmania at the meeting. protest rally outside City Hall. within the city limits. Irakli Kupradze, who is a member of Members of Guerrilla Gardening Tbi- Narmania reiterated that the city gov- the NGO Green Fist, confronted Narma- lisi are continuing their hunger strike ernment has developed a Tbilisi Envi- nia and demanded that the city’s delega- and say the protest will last until their ronmental Strategy for 2015-2020, the tion specifi cally discuss concrete problems demands are met. Guerrilla Gardening’s fi rst of its kind, which will come into instead of making populist statements. Head Nata Peradze was forced to end force on January 1, 2017. Narmania responded to Kupradze’s her week long protest on Tuesday when Under the fi ve-year strategy, nearly demands by calling him a “monkey” and she was rushed to hospital after her 560,000 trees have been planted over expelled him from the meeting. health deteriorated earlier in the week. the last two years, Narmania said. Narmania then chastised several of the Peradze was replaced by fellow Guer- Narmania said he would present a environmentalists for speaking without rilla Gardening member, Elene Mala- comprehensive report on the progress Nata Peradze, Head of NGO Guerrilla Gardening Tbilisi had to be taken to hospital after a week on hunger strike outside Tbilisi City Hall. She has been replaced by Elene permission and told them to leave the shevski-Jakeli. of the environmental strategy to Tbilisi’s Malashevski-Jakeli for the next round of protests session. Both the activists and members The protestors also demanded that City Council on August 26. GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 SOCIETY 9 Hungarian-German Delegation Visits Georgia on Region- Wide Hunt for German PoW Cemeteries

The Hungarian delegation at the monument to Mihaly Zichy, Tbilisi

has always been a bit of a mystery to me, but at the BY MAKA LOMADZE same time my impressions have always been pos- itive. This is a pilgrimage based on a civil initiative. Hungary is recognizing Memorial Years of German n August 22-23, the Hungarian Embassy prisoners taken to labor against their will during in Tbilisi, Georgia, and the German the times of the Soviet Union, in which both the Circle of Baranya County in Hungary State and civil organizations are involved. The Ger- brought a Hungarian-German group man circle of Baranya County has organized two to Tbilisi to seek out old cemeteries tours already,” he told us. whereO German prisoners (PoWs) had been buried The group comprised a number of Hungarian during and after World War II. historians, one of whom was Yuri Dubko: “There The group of 25, made up of ethnic Hungarians have always been economic and cultural ties between as well as ethnic Germans who have lived in Hun- the Hungarian and Georgian tribes, as proven by gary for the past 200 years, visited Chechnya, Azer- historical sources. The fi rst step in our relations baijan and Georgia within the framework of 2015- occurred 1600 years ago with trade and some Geor- 2017 memorial years of post-war captives declared gians are known to have volunteered to fi ght in the by the Hungarian government. Hungarian armies.” According to the German Association, Tbilisi, Dubko was eager to see the country where his around 2000 ethnic Germans live in Georgia today, ancestors had been kept in camps. “We knew from though the exact number is unknown due to con- the surviving PoWs that Georgians had treated stant migration. them very well and not at all like enemies,” he said. During their time here, the group visited the “Sometimes, Georgians took a risk by giving the Saburtalo PoW cemetery, as well as that near the prisoners bread or sending letters to Hungary on Maglivi (High) University block of the Tbilisi State their behalf to tell their families they were alive.” University. They then went to Rustavi, Gardabani, There were 26 camps in Georgia in which Hun- the Hofnungstal-traubental cemetery, Ferdinand garians, Germans, Romanians and other ethnicities Otten’s pharmacy, the 1918 German Embassy, the worked. 800,000 Hungarian PoWs were divided former Kirche / house of Pastor Meier (Marjan- between different countries, out of which 300,000 ishvili), former Wetzel hotel (Marjanishvili), and died. There were around 20,000 Hungarian cap- former German School (David Aghmashenebeli tives just in Tbilisi, 30 percent of whom were eth- St.). GEORGIA TODAY met with them during a nic Germans. Those who died, usually as a result break. of hunger or lack of medicine, were buried in Tbi- “This is my fi rst time in Georgia. I’ve heard quite lisi, Kutaisi, Ochamchire, and other places. a lot about the country and I’ve always wanted to GEORGIA TODAY also spoke with Josef Kompfl , come here,” said Dr. Peter Szilagyi, Deputy State a famous Hungarian architect, an ethnic German, Secretary, representing Hungary. “The Caucasus about his personal war story: “In 1945, when I was three, my father was arrested and forced to work in Georgia. He spent one month getting there and I remember him telling me when he got back three years later that around 200 people were taken together with him, also ethnic Germans.” Among the delegates were representatives of dif- ferent spheres: Judit Muller, Director of the Janus During WWII there Pannonius Museum, Hungary, and Josef Chegir, a Hungarian pensioner and former guitar teacher were around 20,000 among them. Josef fi rst visited Georgia 40 years ago: “The city has modernized well and you get Hungarian captives in the sense that people are living better, if I am not misled by these nice views. Tbilisi has increased Tbilisi, 30 percent of a lot in size and I see a lot of young children- which tells me that it’s not like Hungary, where the mor- whom were ethnic tality rate surpasses the birth rate. Tourism is look- Germans ing better than ever, too!” he told GEORGIA TODAY. GEORGIA TODAY 10 SOCIETY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 Fines for Littering on the Up

casus Environmental NGO Network (CENN), BY BAIA DZAGNIDZE requested statistics of its two targeted regions – Kakheti and Adjara A.R. When asked how their systems worked, most of the municipalities in the ith the new Waste Management regions stated that they either have no-one to Code in action imposing respon- monitor illegal dumping, or they do not have sibility on various structures to information on registered violations. However, it fi ne citizens for illegal dumping, must be noted that Kobuleti, Batumi, and Telavi Georgia has gradually started municipalities are very active in monitoring and Wto reduce the impact of waste on the environment. imposing fi nes if necessary. For instance, in the With a total of 12,915 fi nes handed out, the state period of January 2015 - February 2016, Telavi budget saw 1.3 million GEL in the period from Municipality wrote fi nes that totalled 1,100 GEL, January 2015 to January 2016. while Batumi Municipality received 6,750 GEL Before parliament ratifi ed the new code, the coun- from fi nes. try had no unifi ed document regulating the waste According to the code, a person who dumps less management sector, and problems within it. Penal- than 2 kg of waste is fi ned 80 GEL, from a build- ties were present in the Administrative Code, but ing- 100 GEL and from a car- 120 GEL. For 2 kg or were very fragmented and didn’t include penalties more, the fi ne is 150 GEL, or for a legal entity, 500 that would apply in all cases, or with all types of GEL. waste. So the new code not only established penal- “Fines do have some effect and are effi cient up ties, but also imposed obligations to companies, to a point. People realize that if they are fi ned once the government, local municipalities, and citizens. they will be fi ned for repeated offenses. This is According to Neli Korkotadze, the Chief Envi- similar for enterprises, and for those who have an ronmental Inspector at the Environmental Super- EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment), the fi nes vision Inspectorate, introducing the new code is a are quite high,” explains Korkotadze. She estimates good way for the country to think about a proper that the number of fi nes will continue to increase waste management system, which includes not for another year or year and a half, while munici- only municipal waste but also hazardous, solid, and palities and companies create more organized waste medical waste to name a few. “More importantly, management systems. She notes that the imposi- everything is written out in time in order for the tion of fi nes is directly proportional to the reduc- country to approximate to international regula- tion of pollution to the environment. “The purpose tions. The code is fully based on EU regulations of the fi ne is exactly this – to force people to think and has imposed sanctions on certain violations,” and act differently,” she says, adding that there are continued Korkotadze. very rare cases of repeated violations from a pre- In the sanctions section of the code, the Environ- viously fi ned person or company. mental Supervision Inspectorate (ESI) under the She notes that the problem her inspection faces Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources most often is collecting proof. “If the inspector Protection, Patrol Policy under the Ministry of didn’t see the violation right at the moment, it Internal Affairs, and local municipalities were given becomes hard to fi nd appropriate evidence. Of responsibility and authority for imposing penalties. course there is witness testimony, but it still needs The three institutions have the right to fi ne various to be backed up,” she explained, adding that the organizations and individuals for any actions that second problem is awareness among the popula- violate the code. As Korkotadze notes, the enact- tion, who do not realize the impact of throwing a ment of the code has seen impressive results over bottle on the ground, for instance. the year, however, the problem still exists, with “Another problem that we initially faced but have various areas remaining covered with waste. managed to overcome was that fi nes from the According to statistics from the ESI, the year inspector were sent to court, which prolonged the 2015-2016 saw a dramatic rise in the number of process. From now on, we will have a similar sys- fi nes, from 258 cases in 2014-2015 to 671. While the tem to the patrol police: on-the-spot fi nes. Addi- Patrol Police was not eligible to impose such fi nes tionally, we plan on collaborating with customs before the Waste Management Code, since it was offi ces at the borders in order to put some infor- introduced, the majority of fi nes have been written mational banners in various languages indicating by them, totalling 12,244 cases of littering from cars that throwing garbage in nature is fi ned by law,” on the highway. As Korkotadze explained, both stated Korkotadze. activities were due to the new code, as it forced The next probable step for governmental institu- the institutions to act. tions is to strengthen enforcement mechanisms In the municipalities, there is a more complicated and the capacity of local municipal authorities in picture. Most municipalities have illegal dumpsites order to fully enact the Waste Management Code. due to a lack of municipal waste collection services, Even though fi nes are not a perfect method for either now or in the past. As the code obligated changing habits, it is a proven method, along with the municipalities to act on closing those illegal raising awareness, especially at the early stage. dumpsites, the local authorities have begun work- Therefore, the government, together with local and ing in this direction, and have purchased equipment international organizations, should actively and to provide services to areas which were not previ- aggressively work on campaigns raising awareness ously covered. in order to make the population understand that A USAID funded program Waste Management dumping waste whenever they desire is dreadful Technologies in the Regions (WMTR), which is for the environment, their long-term health, and implemented by the International City/Country costs money for the government to clean and pro- Management Association (ICMA) and the Cau- tect the area. GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 SOCIETY 11 Signs of Something: Etseri,

friendships which have lasted these thirty years, and BY TONY HANMER taught me the art of serigraphy by hand to boot. George was the main graphic artist; I attended his funeral just a few months ago after an inoper- e are now counting down the able brain aneurysm dealt him its fi nal blow. Dear days until the village's fi elds are fellow. He would send me up to eight layers of emptied of scythed, dried, colors to print one after another on intricate little stacked hay, which their owners baseball cap crests, the layers needing to be per- will sled off to their barns by fectly "registered", or lined up one on another in Woxen pairs for bovine winter feed. Once those fi elds the right place and order. When the company had are free, our cows will no longer go up the moun- a falling out with one of its main salesmen and he tain and need laborious fetching down every even- moved on, he couldn't fi nd a better printer in the ing, the summer's drudge. We will send them to province of Alberta, they later told me. I wasn't the this fi eld or that for some weeks, and they'll actu- fastest, but I worked hard to be as accurate as I ally come home themselves! A sign of coming could be. I still have an album of my best work, autumn, as days shorten and cool off while the part of my portfolio. Georgian lowlands continue to swelter. Screen printing is for large-volume orders; you Another fall sign is the coming drop-off in tour- would do a few prints only as art, limited edition ist numbers. School in this country doesn't start signed and numbered pieces to go on the wall. But until mid-September, but elsewhere it's usually for one or a few items, like a single sign or two, earlier than this, so vacationing families with you need vinyl, cut precisely by a computer-con- schoolchildren must wrap things up soon. The trolled blade, and stuck onto the sign. This is what tourists without this time constraint are free, of I went with for my own guest house signs, cut in course, to come and go, and the approaching fall Tbilisi. The frame and post for them had to be season promises spectacular leaf displays on welded by hand to my specifi cations from steel in Svaneti's mountainsides. Zugdidi. Then I spray-painted these parts for rust Speaking of signs... although it's not the best time protection, slot the signs and their plexiglas covers for it (that would be spring), I'm fi nally ready to in, and bolt an end piece on to hold it all in place. plant a Hanmer Guest House sign of my own, and Then I'll drive it down. Dig a deep enough hole; see the fruit that it will produce. It will go in down plant the sign; make cement and fi ll it; guy-rope near the Etseri bus stop, on the Zugdidi- and peg the sign and wait for the cement to dry. road, cemented in place, complementing the smaller That's all there is to it, though I'm embarrassed to version which is on the wall of the house. It's only admit that it took me this long to get around to been, what, two years since I ordered the thing in assembling the thing. Tbilisi and fetched it up here? Better late than never, though, and it will point I used to work in signage, along with screen print- the 1 km way to us from both sides, another item ing of stickers, baseball caps, T-shirts and other in our arsenal of advertising options. It's about things, as a late teenager in Canada. It was my fi rst time! Contact: www.edelbrand.ge full-time job, which came and found me when I Phone: 599 461908 was nearing the end of grade 12 in high school, and Tony Hanmer has lived in Georgia since 1999, in Svaneti it changed my life over four years. since 2007, and been a weekly writer for GT since early Solid Rock Signs, later Sign It, was never that suc- 2011. He runs the “Svaneti Renaissance” Facebook cessful fi nancially, though it was the livelihood of group, now with over 1300 members, at www.facebook. the two men who started it and their families. But com/groups/SvanetiRenaissance/ it was a rich training ground for good work habits He and his wife also run their own guest house in Etseri: and other important adult life skills, helped me make www.facebook.com/hanmer.house.svaneti GEORGIA TODAY 12 SOCIETY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 The Long Road to

but also one of the most isolated. Because BY RICHARD COLLETT of this isolation, and the sheer diffi culty in reaching Ushguli, the villages have managed to retain a somewhat unique 'm Richard, the founder and edi- and archaic feel to them. It's a fascinat- tor of the online magazine Travel ing look into Svaneti's history and cul- Tramp. I'm a travel mad English- ture. man on one epic adventure around Now that I was intent on visiting, it the world, and I love to get as far was time to fi nd a way to actually get Ioff the beaten track as I can! I’ve agreed there. to share a few of my experiences with In Mestia I found a 4x4 driver looking the readers of GEORGIA TODAY. You for work that day and before long Geo can fi nd more at www.travel-tramp.com was driving me into the mountains. I'd always wanted to hike the long road Ushguli is a mere 45 kilometers from to Ushguli from Mestia, high in the Mestia, but Geo said that we would be mountains of the Svaneti region of Geor- gone the whole day. It would take at least gia. But the weather here is unpredict- 3 hours to get there and 3 to get back, able. and that was with no stops. It was April, almost May, and yet the I didn't quite believe him. An average road- if you can even call it that- had speed of 15 kilometres an hour seemed only just opened up. The mountain peaks unbearably slow. And as we sped out of were still covered in snow, the odd ava- Mestia, slowly ascending to new heights, lanche was hurtling down the slopes as the road was nice, new and solid tarmac. the warmer weather turned it to slush, After admiring the views of Mestia, and and in the high passes rocks would tum- the multitude of Svan defensive towers ble to the ground. The nights were freez- that still stand here, we suddenly ing cold, and being a well prepared, began to slow down. organized and of course experienced The new road had ended. traveller, I hadn't thought to pack my Dust was being kicked up, down sleeping bag. How cold could it the tarmac was gone and we be? I thought. Really bloody cold was ample grazing. It might be isolated, but the answer I got. it would be an alluring place in the world In Mestia- the hub of the Svaneti region- to be able to call home. a town that lies at 1500 meters altitude, Then over the crest of the rocky, muddy and mere miles from the Russian border, road, the Svan towers began to appear. I was told by local guides and the tour- The long road was fi nally ending, and ist information service that it wasn't wise I was in Ushguli. to attempt the 4 day walk through the I jumped out of the 4x4, leaving Geo mountains to the UNESCO World Her- to fi nd a cup of hot chai while I stared itage Site of Ushguli. Ushguli is an old in awe at the impressive villages arrayed collection of villages that claims to be before me. Ushguli is a small place, but the highest continually inhabited settle- it doesn't lack character. ment on the planet, a place where ancient There were no real roads or paths Svan defensive towers rise to the clear through the buildings and towers, some blue skies and verdant green mountain of which dated back hundreds of years slopes reach up to the many, many peaks. and had been occupied by the same I was too early in the year to make the families for the entirety of their exist- walk, but a 4x4 would at this time be ence. able to take the road. It wouldn't be quite In places the ice was still so thick it the same, but still, Ushguli would be the had to be physically climbed over, and highest place on Earth that I'd visited. I sliding down the other side there was was in. maximum chance that I'd run into the Maybe it's the altitude affecting me path of a carefree cow. here, but Svaneti is one of the most glo- In other places the snow had melted, rious places I have ever visited, and were driving on a dirt track. From here Geo said that the modern world, though, of the children in these small settlements leaving large, muddy puddles that had Ushguli is the literal pinnacle of that on, the road slowly deteriorated. We was taking its toll on both the language were sent to the cities to live and to to be simply walked through, with no glory. A big claim I know, but one that were crawling along, gaining both alti- and the people here. The Svan have a attend school. It was just easier. But way around. you should really verify yourself if you tude and distance on Mestia. Of course, distinct and proudly separate identity Ushguli still has a diehard population of The locals went their way fearlessly, haven't visited, and if you have been Geo was right. Why did I ever doubt to the lowland Georgians, but inhospi- around 200, and enough kids for a year- traversing snow, ice and mud as if it here, then you already know that what him? table weather conditions and lack of round school to be run there, unlike wasn't even there, some dragging huge I'm claiming is probably true. As we passed through smaller villages economic opportunities have forced many of the villages along the way. sleds through the slush, laden high with Ushguli is actually a collective term and hamlets, we followed the course of many of the younger population to head The altitude meter was creeping up, mud or cow dung, to whatever business for four villages- , Jibiani, the River Ingur. It was fl owing fast, as to the bigger cities of Tbilisi or Zugdidi. and it was becoming colder and colder they had to attend to that day. Chvibiani and Murk’meli- which are the snow on the mountains began melt- That's why the tourism money was as Georgian pop songs blared from the There was even a little restaurant serv- loosely separated from each other, ing in the spring and feeding the fi erce becoming so important, and a reason cassette that Geo was playing at full vol- ing Khachapuri, spicy Karcho soup and although almost completely merged. current. Geo was lamenting the depop- why Mestia has been so developed in ume. showing endless episodes of Georgian They lie at the insurmountable height ulation of Upper Svaneti as we drove. recent years. Ushguli, on the other hand, We were close though, and as we neared soap operas. It wasn't all medieval here. of 2410 meters above sea level. The Svan have an infamous reputation has remained- as an untouchable UNE- the villages, the sloping fi elds which It was already getting late in the day It's high, really high. in Georgia for their independence. The SCO site- the way it has always been for slowly climbed towards the mountains when I went to fi nd Geo, still drinking And the road from Mestia, the closest distinct Svan towers were used in days hundreds of years. became full of signs of life- horses, cat- chai, and we set off in the 4x4, back the town of any real size, is impassable for gone to keep outsiders at bay, and that's We passed small hamlets and the odd tle, sheep, goats and the odd herder and way we’d come, on the only long road much of the year due to snow fall and if they could even make it this high into defensive tower sticking out of the cliff their wayward hut. out of Ushguli, to try and make the slow, landslides. This makes it not only one the mountains. Isolation was their pro- side or on the edge of the river. Geo said The fi elds were vibrant in spring, the rough journey to Mestia before the sun the highest communities in the world, tection. that in the harsh winter months, most snow melting to reveal lush pastures and set.

ROUTING FLIGHT NUMBER WEEK DAYS DEPARTURE ARRIVAL TK 379 02:35 04:05 TBILISI - ISTANBUL ATATURK AIRPORT TK 387EVERYDAY 06:35 08:05 TK 383 22:55 00:30+1 TK 386 01:40 04:55 ISTANBUL ATATURK AIRPORT - TBILISI TK 382EVERYDAY 18:10 21:30 TK 378 21:15 00:30+1 TK 381 1/2/4/5/6/7 04:25 05:50 TBILISI - ISTANBUL SABIHA GOKCEN AIRPORT TK 381 3 05:05 06:30 ISTANBUL SABIHA GOKCEN AIRPORT - TBILISI TK 380 EVERYDAY 19:40 22:55 TK 391 1/2/4/6/7 10:35 11:40 BATUMI - ISTANBUL TK 393 1/3/4/5/7 20:15 21:20 TK 390 1/2/4/6/7 06:25 09:20 ISTANBUL - BATUMI TK 392 1/3/4/5/7 16:20 19:20 Tel: (995 32) 2 45 08 08 10 Galaktion Street E-mail: [email protected]

TIFLIS 7.5x6cm ING.indd 1 13/06/16 15:16 GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 CULTURE 13

WHAT’S ON IN TBILISI THEATER Every Wednesday ticket: 5 GEL EXHIBITION OF GEORGIAN May 18 – September 11 August 27, 30 August 26 – September 2 WEAPONRY AVANT-GARDE 1900-1937 JAM SESSION AT MT MOVEMENT THEATER NUMISMATIC TREASURY The exposition showcases the LEADERS: Address: 182, Aghmashenebeli Ave., SUICIDE SQUAD The exhibition showcases a long collections of the Museum, RESO KIKNAZE QUINTET AND Mushthaid park Directed by David Ayer history of money circulation on the including around 100 paintings and PAPUNA SHARIKADZE Telephone: 599 555 260 Genre: Action, Crime, Fantasy territory of modern Georgia from graphic works, archival material, Free Entry Cast: Margot Robbie, Will Smith, the 6th century BC. to 1834. avant-garde posters and books by Start time: 21:00 August 26 Cara Delevingne Vasily Kandinsky, Niko Pirosmani, Language: Russian Mikhail Gelonov, Natalya RECITATIVE IN THE CITY June 11 – March 11 (2017) August 30 Start time: 22:40 Goncharova, Olga Rozanova, Kiril Directed by Kakha Bakuradze EXHIBITION "MEDIEVAL TANGO EVENING Ticket: 13-14 GEL Zdanevich, David Kakabadze, Lado Start time: 21:00 TREASURY" Gudiashvili, Ziga Valishevsky, “MILONGA, LA CUMPARSITA” Free Entry The exhibition showcases pre- Kazimir Malevich, Alexei ARGENTINE TANGO DANCE WAR DOGS Christian and Georgian medieval Directed by Todd Phillips Kruchenykh, Robert Falk, Osvaldo NIGHT CINEMA art, which refl ects the continuity of Genre: Drama, Comedy, War Lichin, Alexander Shevchenko, Start time: 21:00 the cultural traditions that were the Cast: Miles Teller, Bradley Cooper, Shalva Kikodze, Mikhail Ticket: 5 GEL basis for the formation of Georgian AMIRANI CINEMA Ana de Armas Bilanishvili, Voldemar Boberman, statehood and national identity. Address: 36 Kostava St. Language: Russian Lev Brun and Kliment Redko. MTKVARZE Telephone: 2 99 99 55 Start time: 22:15 Address: 2 Agladze Str. www.kinoafi sha.ge Ticket: 13-14 GEL June 16 – December 16 GIORGI CHALADZE PERSONAL THE EXHIBITION “NEW EXHIBITION September 2 Every Wednesday ticket price: 5 Lari MECHANIC: RESURRECTION DISCOVERIES - GEORGIAN DEDICATED TO HIS 85TH ND-BAUMECKER (Ostgut Ton, August 26 – September 2 ARCHAEOLOGY” (Info Above) ANNIVERSARY Panorama Bar / DE), The exhibition will be held in Start time: 15:00, 17:30, 22:30 The exhibition showcases 40 ASH, GIO SHENGELIA, SIKHA JULIETA the frame of the international Ticket: 13-14 GEL paintings and sculptures created Start time: 23:50 Genre: Drama conference On Salt, Copper, and from the 1960s to present day. Giorgi Ticket: 20 GEL Directed by Pedro Almodóvar ANIMATION MOVIE Gold: The Origins of Early Mining Chaladze is a painter and sculptor, Cast: Adriana Ugarte, Rossy de FESTIVALI IN NIKOZI and Metallurgy in the Caucasus" and the founder of the Union of BATUMI Palma, Emma Suárez Address: Nikozi, Gori Artists from Rustavi. He was awarded Language: Russian June 12 – August 20 the Medal of Honor of Georgia. Start time: 20:00 September 1 EXHIBITION "I SEE WITH MY BATUMI TENNIS CLUB Ticket: 13-14 GEL FESTIVAL OPENING FINGERS" GALLERY Address: Batumi Boulevard Start time: 13:00 The exhibition showcases artworks THE HANDMAIDEN by the professors and students from THE NATIONAL GALLERY August 26 Directed by Chan-Wook Park September 2 Address: 11 Rustaveli Ave. THE SANDA Genre: Drama, Romance Tbilisi State Academy of Arts. Most NEF ANIMATION of the artworks are created around www.museum.ge Start time: 18:00 Cast: Min-hee Kim, Jung-woo Ha, ANIME FESTIVAL Kim Tae-ri the poem "The Knight in the Ticket: 10-20 GEL ANIMATION MOVIE STUDIO PERMANENT EXHIBITION Language: Russian Panther's Skin" and are dedicated ANIMOS Niko Pirosmanashvili, David Start time: 19:15, 22:15 to the 850th anniversary of Shota August 27 TINDIRINDIS - ANIMATION Ticket: 13-14 GEL Rustaveli. Kakabadze, Lado Gudiashvili and SATURDAY BLUES FEVER MOVIE FESTIVAL FROM sculptor Iakob Nikoladze. KOKA & T. BLUES MOB LITHUANIA MECHANIC: RESURRECTION MUSEUM OF SOVIET Band from Tbilisi Start time: 13:00 June 24, 2016 – June 24, 2017 Directed by Dennis Gansel OCCUPATION Start time: 20:00 Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller Address: 3 Sh. Rustaveli Ave. NIKO PIROSMANASHVILI’S MUSEUM Ticket: 10-15 GEL Cast: Jason Statham, Jessica Alba, WORKS “YARD CLEANER” AND Tommy Lee Jones PERMANENT EXHIBITION “EAGLE SEIZING A HARE” GEORGIAN NATIONAL Both paintings were the ownership August 29 Language: Russian BAND ZVERI Start time: 22:00 MUSEUM IOSEB GRISHASHVILI of Ilya and Kirill Zdanevich until SIMON JANASHIA MUSEUM CONCERT Ticket: 13-14 GEL TBILISI HISTORY MUSEUM 1930 when Dimitri Shevardnadze Address: 4 Rustaveli Ave. - KARVASLA bought part of their collection Start time: 19:00 THE INFILTRATOR Telephone: 2 99 80 22, 2 93 48 21 Address: 8 Sioni St. (39 paintings) including the "Yard Ticket: 10-70 GEL Directed by Brad Furman www.museum.ge Telephone: 2 98 22 81 Cleaner" and "Eagle Seizing a Hare". Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama Today, both paintings are among the August 30 Cast: Paul M. Brennan PERMANENT EXHIBITION: July 6 – August 30 collection of Shalva Amiranashvili ANRI JOKHADZE’S FIRST SOLO Language: Russian GEORGIAN ARCHAEOLOGY EXHIBITION “QUARTER OF THE Museum of Fine Arts. CONCERT Start time: 17:00, 19:30 FROM 8TH MILLENNIUM B.C. DAY” BY TAMAR MELIKISHVILI Start time: 20:00 Ticket: 10-14 GEL TO 4TH CENTURY A.D MUSIC Ticket: 15-45 GEL SHALVA AMIRANASHVILI RUSTAVELI CINEMA THE CAUCASUS NATURAL MUSEUM OF ART MOVEMENT THEATER September 2 Address: 5 Rustaveli Ave. HISTORY MUSEUM Address: 1 Lado Gudiashvili St. Address: 182, Aghmashenebeli Ave., BALLETO DI MILANO & ROYAL Telephone: 2 55 50 00 COLLECTION RENEWED Telephone: 2 99 99 09 Mushthaid park NATIONAL BALLET www.kinoafi sha.ge EXHIBITION www.museum.ge Telephone: 599 555 260 Gala concert as a part of its European premier. "Across the Universe" presents a selection of world folk dance heritage performed with Georgian temperament, new choreographic interpretations and a fresh approach. Start time: 20:00 Ticket: 10-30 GEL

CLUB VERTIGO Address: Near Batumi Beach

August 27 NIKOLOZ RACHVELI, LIZA BAGRATIONI AND NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Start time: 21:00 Ticket: 40 GEL

CLUB MANDARIN Address: Batumi Boulevard

August 22 JAH KHALIB Start time: 23:00 Ticket: 50 GEL

TAKE FIVE Address: Near Batumi Beach

August 27 YANN DESTAL THE VOICE OF MODJO Start time: 23:30 Ticket: 40 GEL GEORGIA TODAY 14 SPORTS AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 Golden Moments & Olympic Logic

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– and not only – spectators to grab the OP-ED BY NUGZAR B. RUHADZE special feel of the moment. Trying to put it all in regular journalistic parlance CONTACT PERSON 557 12 38 90 would be more than a vain attempt to ould a weightlifter in the describe the situation. Both Georgian heaviest category look athletes, especially Lasha, were expected elegant? Georgia’s – and to yield a considerable result and Olym- now the world’s – strongest pic logic would have it happen so because The national man is built like a statue both were good and ready, but serendip- Cstanding on cast-iron legs with every ity had it that both would triumph simul- anthem of muscle in its place in a well-built tall taneously in front of the crowds and for body. No doubt he was the most popular many a Georgian leaning eagerly forward Georgia could and attractive physical presence in the in his seat- the relief was truly liberat- arena that day. And the day was an ing; liberating us from heavy hearts, unprecedented instant of triumph in the drooping spirits, disturbed conscience have been played sporting history of Georgia – two national and wistfully roaming minds. We needed fl ags raised at the same time in the same that Gold, and the Bronze, too, for that on more Olympic event as a result of two victo- matter. ries in the 105+ weightlifting contest in I’m just another journalist in the crowd the Rio 2016 Games: Lasha Talakhadze, here, and my role in winning a medal is occasions had 22, who won Gold and Irakli Turmanidze, equal to nothing, but before Lasha’s win, 32, who took Bronze. I still suffered my own sense of guilt that we had both Incidentally, nothing was supposed to a Gold was escaping us. This is the way be taken for granted that memorable it feels once you are a member of the Olympic day – the entire pack of con- Olympic family. better luck and testants was extremely powerful. They Later that day, I discovered our Gold all fought like lions having staged an boy was a real intellectual on top of his better training outstanding show competing for the title muscle power, when I found myself by of strongest among men. chance in an interpreter’s seat at the very valuable set of medals by Lado One had to be present in person among post-battle interviews and press confer- Khinchengashvili, the ‘featherweight’ the emotionally overwhelmed Georgian ence. The logic of thought and the bril- free style wrestler who did very close liance of word were right there for the battle with his Japanese rival. What a ladies and gentlemen of the press and relief it was on the verge of our nervous broadcast media to pick up and make breakdown while watching him fi ght! use of. There could not have been any- So the national anthem of Georgia thing more delightful than recognizing sounded twice in the Rio your fellow countrymen’s versatility in of 2016 – not bad at all! But the happy Our motto was to the most important international event tune could have been played on more for the rest of the world to hear. occasions had we had both better luck Thank you, boys! We all like a happy and better training. Says Leri Khabelov, do better in Rio ending in a book or a movie, but a happy President of the Georgian National Olym- ending in real life feels even better. pic committee who feels proud about than we did in More happiness came on hearing that our Olympic harvest: ‘Our motto was to Georgian Zaza Nadiradze had emerged do better in Rio than we did in London, number 5 in rowing – the single scull – and the mission was accomplished; all London, and the beating everybody’s expectations. Olym- our athletes fought selfl essly, having pic logic should have given us a couple done their utmost. In a word, all our mission was of medals in judo, but fortune did not preliminary calculations have been jus- have them for us. But then a second Gold tifi ed. This feels really good.’ Nothing to accomplished piece was added to our modest but still add! GEORGIA TODAY AUGUST 26 - 29, 2016 SPORTS 15 Exclusive Interview with Olympic Champion in Weightlifting, Lasha Talakhadze

BY NUGZAR B. RUHADZE AND GIORGI CHANISHVILI

asha Talakhadze, a 22-year-old Georgian, recently won Gold in the Rio Olympic Games, losing a world record for snatch but setting a new one forL total (473kg). He has been training, as per his family’s tradition, almost half his life, following in the footsteps of his father before him. GEORGIA TODAY got a chance to meet him.

YOUR DAD WAS A WELL- KNOWN WEIGHTLIFTER OF HIS TIME. HOW MUCH HAS HE HELPED YOU IN YOUR SPORTING CAREER? He helped me a lot. He was a very strong athlete himself – winner of medals and other awards. Didn’t I overpower the greatest Persian cation and sports where I majored in weightlifter? What matters is that all coaching skills. I have a plan to deepen YOU ARE IN A PERFECT my new world records and my Olympic my education in the future. PHYSICAL SHAPE. HOW Gold are in place. RIGID IS YOUR DAY-TO-DAY YOU HAVE ACHIEVED ALL REGIME? WHAT DOES YOUR WHAT IS IT THAT YOU YOU COULD IN SPORTS. WORKING DAY LOOK LIKE? MOST LIKE TO DO ASIDE WHAT IS THE NEXT STAGE OF Weightlifting is a huge part of my very FROM WEIGHTLIFTING? YOUR SPORTING DREAM? busy life. I’m in training day in, day out I love to spend my free time with my I’ve got all the titles I could earn so far which practically leaves no time for family, which I adore. but I want to appear in almost every me to relax- sport totally dominates high-level competition in the world. my life. YOU HAVE IMPRESSED THE PUBLIC WITH YOUR WITS, NOT DO YOU EVER SMOKE YOU DID ALL SIX MOVEMENTS ONLY WITH YOUR PHYSICAL OR DRINK ALCOHOL? OF THE OLYMPIC EVENT STRENGTH. HOW DID YOU Never! And I never will. That said, I WITHOUT MUCH STRAIN. WHY MANAGE TO DO THIS? wouldn’t say no to a glass of a good wine DID YOU AND YOUR COACH I love reading. Often, at sport collective on special occasions. But that’s all! NOT ORDER HIGHER WEIGHTS? sessions, I read books. I always have a THE IRANIAN ATHLETE BEAT couple in my backpack. ARE YOU THINKING OF YOUR WORLD RECORD BY GETTING MARRIED ANY TIME JUST ONE KILO. DO YOU WHERE DID YOU GO TO HIGH SOON? OR WOULD MARRIAGE REGRET YOUR CHOICE? SCHOOL AND COLLEGE? DO GET IN THE WAY OF FUTURE I don’t regret anything. These things YOU WORK TO MAKE MONEY? SPORTS TRIUMPHS FOR YOU? happen in sporting life on a regular basis. I graduated from high school in western I have no special plans or thoughts in The weights we ordered were optimal Georgia and then continued my educa- that direction because sport is fi rst place – the result talks volumes about that. tion in a special college of physical edu- in my life right now.

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