Shevardnadze Promises to Cover Pension Backlog

(Tbilisi, July 28, 2003, Civil Georgia) – “Government will pay debt to Samtredia and Kutaisi pensioners in the nearest days,” President Eduard Shevardnadze said in his Monday radio broadcast on July 28.

In the wake of Presidential decree considering cover of the pension backlog, five MPs from the opposition National Movement party ceased the hunger strike on July 27.

In April district courts of Samtredia and Kutaisi ruled positively on local pensioners’ appeal, which sued the government for unpaid pensions for years 1998-2000.

The MPs from the opposition Natio!
nal Movement went on hunger strike on July 16 demanding the government enforcement of the court’s ruling.

Eduard Shevardnadze said that the government works on repayment of debt of other pensioners as well. “The relevant bodies will elaborate a project on payment of the debt, which will be covered either by securities or by deduction of a tax on land,” Shevardnadze said.

He said the existing corruption has triggered accumulation of the pension debt in the country.