MEDIATION AND DIALOGUE IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS A reflection on 15 years of conflict transformation initiatives Understanding conflict. Building peace. About International Alert International Alert is a 26-year old independent peacebuilding organisation. We work with people who are directly affected by violent conflict to improve their prospects of peace. And we seek to influence the policies and ways of working of governments, international organisations like the UN and multinational companies, to reduce conflict risk and increase the prospects of peace. We work in Africa, several parts of Asia, the South Caucasus, the Middle East and Latin America and have recently started work in the UK. Our policy work focuses on several key themes that influence prospects for peace and security – the economy, climate change, gender, the role of international institutions, the impact of development aid, and the effect of good and bad governance. We are one of the world’s leading peacebuilding NGOs with more than 148 staff based in London and 14 field offices. To learn more about how and where we work, visit www.international-alert.org. This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of International Alert and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union. © International Alert 2012 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without full attribution. Layout by D. R. ink, www.d-r-ink.com Mediation and Dialogue in the South Caucasus: A Reflection on 15 Years of Conflict Transformation Initiatives Editors Batal Kobakhia, Jana Javakhishvili, Larisa Sotieva and Juliet Schofield 2 | Mediation and Dialogue in the South Caucasus Contents Acronyms 5 About the Contributors 6 Preface 13 Introduction 14 Glossary 21 PART 1: Official and Civil Mediation 23 CHAPTER 1 24 Mediation and Dialogue: Official and Unofficial Strategies Natalia Mirimanova CHAPTER 2 50 Opportunities and Limitations for Civil Society in the Conflict Transformation Process Case Study of the Georgian-Abkhaz Conflict Liana Kvarchelia PART 2: Politics and Mediation 61 CHAPTER 3 62 The Schlaining Process Jonathan Cohen CHAPTER 4 99 The Schlaining Process: An Abkhaz Perspective Manana Gurgulia CHAPTER 5 108 The Schlaining Process: A Georgian Perspective Paata Zakareishvili PART 3: Permanent Conference as Mediation 119 CHAPTER 6 120 Building and Sustaining a Permanent Conference Paula Garb Contents | 3 CHAPTER 7 130 The University of California (Irvine) Georgian-Abkhaz Civil Dialogue Process: A Georgian Perspective Nodar Sarjveladze CHAPTER 8 136 The University of California (Irvine) Georgian-Abkhaz Civil Dialogue Process: An Abkhaz Perspective Arda Inal-Ipa PART 4: Civil Society Development and Mediation 147 CHAPTER 9 148 The Experience of the Caucasus Forum: An Experiment in Holistic Peacebuilding Gevorg Ter-Gabrielyan CHAPTER 10 195 The Phenomenon of the Caucasus Forum Zhanna Krikorova CHAPTER 11 210 Remembering the Forgotten Alan Parastaev PART 5: Economy and Mediation 222 CHAPTER 12 223 Economy and Conflict in the South Caucasus The Caucasus Business and Development Network Diana Klein and Oskari Pentikainen CHAPTER 13 264 Economy and Conflict in the South Caucasus: Mediation – from Theory to Practice Aghavni Karakhanyan PART 6: Media and Mediation 286 CHAPTER 14 287 Media and Mediation in the Caucasus: Some Reflections Thomas de Waal 4 | Mediation and Dialogue in the South Caucasus CHAPTER 15 295 Mediation: From the Word ‘Media’? Karine Ohanyan CHAPTER 16 308 The Institute for War and Peace Reporting: Media and Peacebuilding Shahin Rzayev PART 7: Gender and Mediation 318 CHAPTER 17 319 The Peacebuilding Experience of the Caucasus Women’s League Natella Akaba CHAPTER 18 329 The Caucasus Women’s League: Five Years On Marina Pagava PART 8: Cultural and Academic Mediation 344 CHAPTER 19 345 Georgia-Abkhazia: Historiography and Conflict Experience of Teaching History as a Form of Mediation George Anchabadze CHAPTER 20 361 Dialogue through Culture – or Cultural Dialogue Batal Kobakhia CHAPTER 21 383 Understanding and Defending what it Means to be Human Guram Odisharia Acronyms | 5 Acronyms AGT Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey pipeline ASPR Austrian Study Center for Peace and Conflict Resolution ASU Abkhaz State University BTC Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline CBDN Caucasus Business and Development Network CIS Commonwealth of Independent States CR Conciliation Resources CSCE Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (precursor to OSCE) CSDP Common Security and Defence Policy CSO Civil Society Organisation CSTO Collective Security Treaty Organization EaP European Union Eastern Partnership EBRD European Bank for Reconstruction and Development EC European Commission ECRG South Caucasus Economy and Conflict Research Group ENP European Union Neighbourhood Policy EUMM European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia GIPA Georgian Institute of Public Affairs IDP Internally Displaced Person IMTD Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy INGO International Non-Governmental Organisation IWPR Institute for War and Peace Reporting JCC Joint Control Commission for Georgian–Ossetian Conflict Resolution JPK Joint Peacekeeping Forces KCR Karachay-Cherkessia Republic KGB Committee for State Security MID Ministry of Internal Affairs MLA Members of the Legislative Assembly (Northern Ireland) MP Member of Parliament NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization NGO Non-Governmental Organisation OSCE Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe RBC Regional Business Centre SME Small and Medium-sized Enterprise TABDC Turkish-Armenian Business Development Council TACIS European Union Technical Assistance to the Commonwealth of Independent States UCI University of California Irvine UNDPA United Nations Department of Political Affairs UNDPKO United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations UNHCR United Nations Refugee Agency (UN High Commissioner for Refugees) UNIFEM United Nations Development Fund for Women UNOMIG United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia UNSC United Nations Security Council UNSRSG United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General UNV United Nations Volunteer 6 | Mediation and Dialogue in the South Caucasus About the Contributors Natalia Mirimanova is a conflict resolution scholar-practitioner and has extensive work experience throughout Russia, the South Caucasus and Central Asia, in Moldova, Ukraine, the Balkans and Eastern Europe. Since 1993, she has designed and implemented conflict analysis and resolution programmes and trainings for universities, business and civil society sectors, as well as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and community groups. Natalia has carried out interdisciplinary research projects under the aegis of the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Internews, International Alert, Conciliation Resources, the Aga Khan Foundation and the National Democratic Institute, among others. She is also a co-author of several books – From War Economy to Peace Economy in the South Caucasus (International Alert, 2004), Corruption and Conflict in the South Caucasus (International Alert, 2006) and others – as well as articles and training manuals on conflict transformation, democracy building in transitional societies and mass media. Natalia received her PhD from the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University, US. Liana Kvarchelia is Deputy Director of the Centre for Humanitarian Programmes (CHP), one of the longest-standing NGOs in Abkhazia, established in 1994. Working on a range of civil society development issues, she is regularly involved as a researcher facilitator, trainer and moderator in various projects related to democratisation processes in Abkhazia, and to conflict transformation and civic education both in Abkhazia and in the wider Caucasus framework. Since 1996, she has been actively involved in a number of projects concerning the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict, including participation in long-term programmes together with the University of California (Irvine), Conciliation Resources and International Alert. From 1997 to 2000, she worked as National Community Facilitator in the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Abkhazia. She spent the academic year 2000–2001 as an International Fellow at the independent peacebuilding organisation Responding to Conflict in the UK. Liana has also served as one of the leaders of the “League of Voters for Fair Elections”, which has monitored elections in Abkhazia since 2004. Jonathan Cohen joined Conciliation Resources in 1997 and developed the Caucasus programme focusing on dialogue and peacebuilding initiatives. In September 2008, he became Director of Programmes overseeing Conciliation Resources’ regional programmes in East and West Africa, the Caucasus, India/Pakistan (Kashmir), the Philippines, Fiji and Colombia. Previously, Jonathan was Deputy Director of the Foundation on Inter-Ethnic Relations in The Hague, working with the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities. Before that, he worked for International Alert and the Peace Research Institute Oslo. He has been a board member of the Department for International Development/Charities Aid Foundation (DFID/CAF) Partnerships in the Non-Profit Sector Programme for Russia, acted as a consultant to United Nations About the Contributors