The report of the Human Rights Center outlines human rights violations committed by the occupying regime in villages near the Tskhinvali region and Georgian-controlled territory from April 2023 to September 2023. These violations include illegal borderization, restricted access to natural resources for locals, violation of property rights and deteriorated social-economic situation caused by the occupation.
During field visits, the HRC representatives visited the following villages in Gori, Kareli and Kasp municipalities: Kveshi, Plavi, Plavismani, Karbi, Kere, Kvemo Artsevi, Ergneti, Karapila, Siribari, Zardiantkari, Atotsi, Avlevi, Knolevi, Koda, Abano, Tchvrinisi, Gulikaantubani, Bredze. During the visits, they met local population and visited places where their entry was safe.
According to the Human Rights Center, because of hard life, young people migrate from the villages. The interviews with the young people, who still live in the villages showed that they also plan to migrate. The locals, who are farming in the villages, face many problems because of occupation. The creeping occupation significantly restrict their access to agricultural plots, forests and pastures that disable them to develop their farms and negatively impact on their social-economic state. The Center has petitioned local and central authorities to address these issues.
The Georgia-controlled territory’s agricultural land is restricted to locals due to dangers near the occupation line and there is lack of irrigation water. HRC representatives identified infrastructural issues, burdening those living near the line, requiring timely resolution.
Access to health services is a significant issue in villages near the occupation line, with doctors often not receiving patients, forcing locals to seek medical consultations in nearby towns. Irregular municipal transport in some villages leads to difficulties for locals accessing doctors, with the absence of pharmacies being a major issue.
Inhabitants of some villages complain about lack of mountain settlement status due to unclear criteria and lack of knowledge about village altitude calculation.
Inhabitants of Kvemo Artsevi village complained that their village is not perceived to be a village adjacent to the occupation line and it does not have status of mountainous region either.
According to the HRC, Inhabitants of the villages adjacent to the occupation line noted that they feel insecure because there are facts when locals are captured. People cannot take their cattle to the pastures because they are afraid to approach the occupation line. There is no police checkpoints in the villages adjacent to the occupation line that make the locals feel more insecure.
Inhabitances from Gori Municipalities are struggling to obtain funding for students, often unable to access state funding for high education, with several dozen students unable to secure funding within the state program.
To improve the social-economic and human rights situation in the abovementioned villages HRC recommends:
To the Ministry of Education and Science:
- To timely inform the students living adjacent the occupation line about the education funding program for them. In case of later submitted applications, they shall take the objective reasons into account and finance the students;
To the Ministry of Labor, Health and Social Welfare and the Kareli municipality city hall:
- To petition the Council to resolve the issue of granting the status of mountainous settlement to the villages of Abano, Tchvrinisi and Bredza so that the inhabitants of these villages enjoyed the benefits under this status;
- The municipal authority shall arrange drinking and irrigation water systems in Abano village;
- To open outpatients with specialists in Abano village;
- To arrange drainage system and irrigation water system in the villages of Atotsi (Gulikaantubani) and Koda;
To the Kaspi municipality city hall and the Ministry of Education and Science:
- To petition the Council to consider granting the status of mountainous settlement to the villages of Karapila and Saribari so that the inhabitants of these villages enjoyed the benefits under the status;
- To arrange the name banners in the villages of Karapila, Saribari and Zadiantkari;
- To timely arrange the children’s playground, street illuminations, garbage bins and irrigation water system in the villages of Karapila, Saribari and Zadiantkari;
- To ensure that locals had unlimited access to public transport;
- To build kindergarten and school;
To the Gori Municipality City Hall:
- To build kindergarten in Kvemo Artsevi village so that children of pre-school age do not have to go to kindergartens in the neighboring villages;
- To petition to the Council to consider the granting of the status of mountainous settlement to Kvemo Artsevi so that the inhabitants of the village enjoyed the benefits under the status;
- To provide public transport for the inhabitants of Karpi and Plavismani villages so that the locals were able to transport without obstacles and get employed.
