NCSJ - Georgia page

Population: 5 million

Ethnic Composition: 70.1% Georgian, 8.1% Armenian, 6.3% Russian, 5.7% Azeri, 3% Ossetian, 1.8% Abkhazian, 5% other
Religion: 65% Georgian Orthodox Christian, 11% Muslim, 8% Armenian Apostolic, 6% other (and other Christian)

Jewish population: 8-10,000
2002 Aliyah (emigration to Israel): 513
2002 Emigration to United States: 10

Size: 69,700 sq km Capital: Tbilisi Major cities: Tbilisi, Poti, Batumi, Sokhumi

Freedom House Rating: Partly Free

Currency: 2.1 lari = $1 (October 3, 2003)

GDP: $3.3 billion (2002)
GDP per capita: $635 (2002)
GDP Growth: 5.4% (2002)

Head of State: Mikhail Saakashvili

Head of Government:
Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania

Foreign Minister:
Salome Zourabichvili

Ambassador to the United States:
Levan Mikeladze

Washington Diplomat
Profile of Amb. Mikeladze

U.S. Ambassador to Georgia:
Richard Miles*

*On July 29, 2005, John Tefft was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the new U.S. Ambassador to Georgia

Chronology of all U.S. envoys to Georgia

SUMMARY

Georgia's political landscape since independence has been turbulent, but its current administration, which took office following a "velvet revolution" in November 2003, is considered pro-reform. Civil war followed Georgia's 1991 declaration of independence, resulting from ethnic and religious tensions long simmering under the Soviet regime. Georgia’s economy, weakened by this turmoil, continues to struggle.

Russian involvement in various Georgian conflicts, and Russian allegations of peripheral involvement by Georgia in the Chechen conflict, color the current distrust between the two countries. Relations with Israel are very cordial, and Georgia has reached out for deeper relations with Western Europe. Georgia and the United States have enjoyed a consistently warm relationship.

The Georgian Jewish community, whose history extends back 2,600 years, is active despite high levels of emigration during the past decade. Interfaith relations and government relations are good, and there is no tradition of popular or official anti-Semitism.

return to top

REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA

INTRODUCTION
POLITICAL SITUATION
FOREIGN POLICY
    Russia & the Pankisi Gorge
    Western Europe
    Israel
ECONOMIC SITUATION
JEWISH COMMUNAL LIFE & ANTI-SEMITISM
    Community Issues
U.S. POLICY

Georgia, located in the southern Caucasus, is slightly larger than West Virginia. It occupies a strategic position, bordering Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey, and the Black Sea. Georgian history dates back more than 2,500 years, and Georgian is one of the world’s oldest living languages. A strong regional power in the Middle Ages, Georgia was either occupied or struggling against occupation by various Muslim powers throughout the 15th – 19th centuries. Georgia sought Russian protection in the 18th century, which resulted in gradual occupation and ultimately, forcible annexation by Russia in 1801. After a brief post-World War I independence, Georgia was re-conquered by the Red Army in 1921.

Georgian politics were extremely turbulent and violent in the years immediately following Georgia’s independence. Led by Zviad Gamsakhurdia, Georgia declared independence on April 9, 1991. Although Gamsakhurdia was elected President in May 1991 with 87 percent of the popular vote, his erratic and occasionally anti-democratic policies led to his ouster and to civil war in August 1991. Russian and Soviet domination has left a legacy of strong anti-Russian attitudes, reinforced by Russian support for secessionist movements on Georgian soil.

return to headings

POLITICAL SITUATION

The Georgian constitution sets a balance of executive and legislative powers that is more equitable than in most of the other successor states. The constitution establishes a 235-seat unicameral legislature, whose members serve four-year terms, a Supreme Council (Umaghiesi Sabcho), and an independent judiciary. The President, elected every five years by popular vote to a maximum of two terms, wields significant but not unlimited powers.

President Eduard Shevardnadze led the nation from December 1991, when the former Soviet Foreign Minister was invited by a coalition of anti-Gamsakhurdia leaders to head a provisional Georgian government, until November 2003. Shevardnadze’s government effectively defeated the pro-Gamsakhurdia (Zviadist) forces in 1992, and the civil war ended with Gamsakhurdia’s death from possible suicide in January 1994. Elected President in November 1995 with 74 percent of the popular vote, Shevardnadze was reelected to a second five-year term in April 2000 with over 80 percent of the vote. The next presidential election, for which Shevardnadze would have been ineligible, was set for 2005.

In the last parliamentary elections (October 1999), the Shevardnadze-aligned Citizen’s Union of Georgia (CUG) won 42 percent, leading a legislature that is considered pro-reform. International observers and opposition parties made allegations of electoral improprieties in the 1999-2000 election cycle. The next parliamentary elections are scheduled for November 2003.

Since independence, Georgia has experienced devastating ethnic and territorial disputes. In South Ossetia, a separatist regime has defied central authority since a 1990-92 civil war, despite UN efforts, a Russian peacekeeping presence, and a 1998 face-to-face meeting between Shevardnadze and South Ossetian then-President Lyudvig Chibirov. Current South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoev, elected in 2001, has vowed to press for the region’s sovereignty and for closer ties with Russia. The breakaway region and Georgia are still formally at war.

In the Abkhazian conflict (1992-94), the Georgian government attempted to re-impose central authority after ethnic Abkhazian separatists declared independence from Georgia. In 1993, the separatists defeated Georgian forces, generating 300,000 ethnic Georgian refugees, who fled from Abkhazia and were relocated to other regions of Georgia. A cease-fire was signed in 1994 and 1,500 Russian peacekeepers were deployed. Thousands of refugees have returned to Abkhazia, and the Georgian parliament voted in 1999 to grant Abkhazia the status of autonomous republic. However, domestic protest continues over Russia’s pledge to keep troops in the area, and Russia re-ignited tensions in 2002 by offering passports to the region’s residents and unilaterally restoring a rail link between the region and Russia.

During the 1991-95 period of civil strife, human rights abuses were common on all sides, though from the mid-1990s the government worked, with some success, to improve its record. Shevardnadze’s efforts at reform since the 1995 truce have made him unpopular with some vested interests. Russian-backed reactionary forces reputedly made assassination attempts against Shevardnadze in 1995 and 1998. Remnants of Zviadist forces may still operate as terrorists, and pervasive corruption has significantly impeded reform efforts.

Some Georgians are increasingly concerned about their demographic weakness in regions with large ethnic Armenian and Azeri populations. Religious differences between Muslims and Georgian Orthodox Christians contribute to tensions, and Georgia still refuses to allow the repatriation of 300,000 Meskhetians Turks, Islamicized ethnic Georgians who were deported to Central Asia under Stalin.

Georgia is currently experiencing an upsurge in both politically- and religiously- motivated violence. Government security agents stormed the main independent TV station, Rustavi-2, in October 2001. Shevardnadze denied the raid was politically motivated, but popular protests sparked by the station’s closing forced Shevardnadze to fire his cabinet and promise to push for a constitutional amendment re-creating the post, abolished in 1995, of Prime Minister.

Attacks on non-Orthodox Christian groups have increased dramatically, particularly against Baptists, Catholics, and Jehovah’s Witnesses. Attacks against other groups have also increased. In July 2002, the Tbilisi-based Institute of Freedom was attacked, the director and others beaten and equipment destroyed. The Institute, a religious freedom advocacy organization, had criticized government inaction on religious attacks. The government denies any involvement in the incident and has promised to pursue the attackers but has not identified any suspects.

The Georgian Parliament and the Georgian Orthodox church signed a Concordat in October 2002, ending separation of church and state and granting special privileges to the Church. The Parliament is also considering a religion law that would grant legal identity to groups through registration, but which would impose heavy restrictions on registration eligibility.

return to headings

FOREIGN POLICY

With the exception of Russia, Georgia’s relations with its neighbors are generally good. President Shevardnadze has played an instrumental role in trying to bridge differences between Armenia and Azerbaijan, including the hosting of trilateral talks. Georgia initiated the informal GUUAM (Georgia, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova) regional alliance, intended to facilitate energy sector cooperation, among other issues.

Georgia was forced to make concessions to Russia in 1993-94 in order to procure Russian support for cease-fires in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and against the Zviadists in the civil war. In December 2000, Russia subjected Georgians to a full visa regime, and it has interrupted gas deliveries to Georgia on a number of occasions. Russia has shut two of its four bases in Georgia according to a schedule for full withdrawal formulated at the 1999 OSCE Istanbul summit. However, fearing renewed violence in Abkhazia, Shevardnadze asked in June 2003 that Russian peacekeepers remain in that region.

Russia & the Pankisi Gorge

Russia, engaged since the 1990s in war against separatists in Chechnya, has accused Georgia of allowing Chechen guerillas a safe haven in the Pankisi Gorge. Georgia argues that Russia’s war in Chechnya is responsible for an influx of refugees and guerillas into the area, already notorious for drug and weapons smuggling activity. Russia conducted several aerial strikes on Georgian territory in 2002, killing at least one civilian. Georgia carried out anti-terrorism operations in the Gorge through summer and fall 2002, and has been participating in a U.S.-led anti-crime and anti-terrorism military training operation. Despite these actions, the dispute remains unresolved.

Western Europe

President Shevardnadze has actively pursued Georgia’s integration with the West. Georgia joined the Council of Europe in April 1999, and is also a member of NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and Partnership for Peace. Together with several other successor states, Georgia seeks eventual full membership in NATO.

In October 2001, the helicopter of a United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia was shot down over Abkhazia, killing nine aboard. In July 2002, the UN Security Council passed a resolution condemning Georgia’s failure to find the perpetrators of that attack and upbraiding both sides in the Abkhaz conflict for a failure to work to end the conflict.

Several incidents of kidnapping, of EU civilians as well as UN Observers in Georgia, occurred throughout 2002-2003. The EU has threatened the suspension of financial aid if Georgia does not make greater efforts to control the lawless Pankisi and Kodori Gorges.

Israel

Relations between Georgia and Israel are warm. Israel has an embassy in Tbilisi (which also services Armenia), and Georgia maintains an embassy in Tel-Aviv. In January 1998, President Shevardnadze met in Israel with then-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and signed a “declaration of friendship.” Netanyahu returned the favor in March 1999, visiting Tbilisi and signing a military cooperation agreement. Georgia has also purchased Israeli military equipment.

Israel has provided humanitarian aid to Georgia on several occasions. During an official visit to Georgia by Israeli President Moshe Katsav in January 2001, Israel initiated drought assistance for Georgian agriculture, and in May 2002, Israel sent humanitarian assistance to earthquake victims. Israeli hospitals support the Tbilisi Diabetes Center through a twin-cities program.

return to headings

ECONOMIC SITUATION

Georgia had been among the most prosperous republics of the Soviet Union, but its economy was devastated by the 1991 Soviet breakup, the 1991-94 civil war, and secessionist conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 1990-94. Political chaos was aggravated by hyperinflation, and by 1995, the Georgian GDP was only 20 percent of its 1990 level. Growth slowed in 1998-2000, due to the Russian and Asian financial crises and a massive drought, but picked up in 2000-01 due in part to economic reforms. Poverty is endemic, and unemployment is estimated at 17 percent.

Restructuring the economy is a high priority. Prices have been liberalized, privatization of small and medium-size businesses is complete, and trade takes place with few government restrictions. However, the weakness of the banking sector and of fiscal bodies, widespread corruption and stagnancy of energy and agricultural sector reform continue to impede economic progress, and have allowed the formation of a substantial shadow economy.

In view of its high debt, Georgia joined the CIS-7 initiative, created in 2001 by international lending organizations to reform the financial structure of new loans to the poorest former Soviet countries; the aid is now focused on private sector development. From 1995 to 2001, Georgia adhered to International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank requirements, receiving over $277 million from the IMF, and $334.9 million from the Bank. In January 2001, the IMF approved a $141 million, three-year anti-poverty loan for Georgia, but both the IMF and World Bank withheld funding through 2001 in response to severe fiscal shortfalls. Having resumed funding in 2002-2003 in response to successful banking sector reforms, the IMF has threatened a funding freeze unless Georgia fulfills its obligations by August 2003, and acts to pay energy sector bills and foreign loans. Part of Georgia’s massive foreign debt – which totals $1.7 billion – was rescheduled by the Paris Club in April 2001, and Georgia is seeking the same for 2002-03. International investment has focused on administrative and judicial reform, the private and energy sectors, health care, and infrastructure. As of June 2000, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) had nearly $162 million in ongoing projects.

On June 14, 2000, Georgia became the 137th member of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Georgia’s primary trading partners are Turkey and Russia, but Georgia is attempting to boost its trade with the West. Turkey’s currency crisis in 2001 drove Georgian exports down sharply, although rebounding agricultural yield largely offset the damage.

While domestic energy resources are scarce, and Georgia currently relies on Russia for much of its energy, Georgia occupies a prime location for trans-shipment of oil from the Caspian and Central Asia into Europe. In 1996, Georgia and Azerbaijan signed a lucrative 30-year deal to pump “early oil” through Georgia to the Black Sea port of Supsa where it can be distributed throughout the Balkans. Other projects include the trans-shipment of Kazakh oil from the Tenghiz field and the highly promising Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, slated to be operational in 2005.

In May 2003, Russian gas giant Gazprom gained the right to manage many gas pipelines in Georgia and, in August, Russian electric company RAO Unified Energy Systems (UES) bought a controlling stake in the country’s electric infrastructure. These developments have prompted domestic outcries that Shevardnadze may be trading state assets for political support from Russia, and international concern that Russia could jeopardize such Western-led ventures as the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum gas and BTC oil pipelines.

President Shevardnadze announced in September 2003 that Azerbaijan will start gas shipments to Georgia in winter 2003, but Georgia will continue to be dependent on Russia for most of its energy supplies.

return to headings

JEWISH COMMUNAL LIFE & ANTI-SEMITISM

Jewish settlement in Georgia dates back 2,600 years. Once numbering as many as 100,000, the Jewish population has grown smaller over the past decade due to aliyah, in large part a response to the political and economic turmoil that followed independence. Ashkenazi Jews, comprising 20 percent of the community, began to arrive after Russian annexation of Georgia in 1801, especially during World War II. Georgia is generally considered to have provided a hospitable environment toward Jews, though conditions deteriorated after an anti-communist rebellion in Georgia was suppressed by the Soviets in 1924. Soviet policy then changed for the worse, under official anti-Zionism, in the 1930s.

The distinction between the Ashkenazi and indigenous Jews often extends into religious and communal organizations, though relations are quite warm. Most Jews live in the capital, Tbilisi, although much smaller communities remain in Kutaisi, Batumi, Rustavi, Ahaltsihe, Ahalkalaki, Surami, Oni, Kareli, and Stalin’s hometown of Gori. Almost no Jews remain in the provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

In September 1998, the Georgian government sponsored a major celebration commemorating 26 centuries of Jewish life in Georgia. Over 50,000 people attended, including President Shevardnadze, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister (now President) Moshe Katsav, Israel’s Ashkenazi and Sephardi Chief Rabbis, and American Jewish leaders.

photo: Shai Franklin

Jewish Ethnographic Museum, Tbilisi

Organized Jewish life has flourished since independence, and most communal organizations are based in the capital. The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI/ “Sochnut”) and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC/ “Joint”) both have permanent representatives stationed in Georgia, and the JDC-supported Hesed Eliyahu distributes food and medical aid to the elderly, who comprise over 50 percent of the Jewish population. A branch of Hillel is active in Tbilisi.

Georgian Jewish history is preserved at the Jewish Ethnographic Museum. Moreover, three newspapers – Shalom, Menora, and 26 Century – cover contemporary Jewish life, and a Jewish radio station and television station periodically broadcast Jewish programming. Tbilisi’s Shalom Club, comprised of graduates of courses offered by the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Center for International Cooperation (MASHAV), coordinates community events and charity projects in Georgia in cooperation with the Israeli Embassy.

The Jewish Community of Ashkenazi Jews of Georgia (Rahamim), the umbrella organization for Ashkenazi Jews, is active in organizing care for Jewish cemeteries and synagogues, while the Association of Georgian Jews (Derekh Yehudi) works on property restitution and hosts a variety of community events and programs.

Though the community’s synagogues are regarded as distinct to the Georgian or Ashkenazi communities, the services, and especially educational programs of the community, cater to both groups. The Chief Rabbi of Georgia, Rabbi Ariel Levin, is a native Georgian, who received his smicha (ordination) in Israel.

A Jewish day school, a library, several Sunday schools for children and adults, and a yeshiva college for men all contribute to the revitalization of Jewish life. Rabbi Levin opened a kindergarten in September 2002 at his 86-student day school, Tiferet Tsvi. Chabad Lubavitch opened a kindergarten in October 2002. An educational center, also run by Rabbi Levin, teaches both secular and religious subjects and has recently started a program to train Jewish teachers for the community. A JDC-supported Open University offers high-level courses in Judaism.

In August 2003, JDC hosted the opening of a new “Jewish House” for several of the community’s organizations: the Hesed Eliyahu Charitable Center, the Jewish Cultural Center, Hillel-Tbilisi, the Institute of Social and Communal Workers, editorial headquarters of the Jewish newspapers, and the Office of the Georgian-Jewish Folk Dance and Song Ensemble. The dedication ceremony was attended by several hundred people including Georgian government officials, the ambassadors from Israel and the United States, and leaders of the Jewish community. Synagogues, Jewish schools and cultural centers are also located in smaller communities.

return to headings

Community Issues

Historically, Georgians have exhibited little anti-Semitic sentiment. During the brief period of Georgian independence in 1918-21, Jews exercised full rights under law and held some important governmental positions. After this period, restrictions on religious activities and aliyah were reinstated by the Soviets, though relations between Jews and ethnic Georgians remained friendly. In the 1970s, the Jewish community’s push to lift aliyah restrictions intensified, received international attention, and finally resulted in the emigration of 30,000 Georgian Jews to Israel. In 1994, President Shevardnadze issued a decree to protect Jewish religious, cultural and historic monuments. In January 2001, representatives of the Georgian Orthodox Church and the Jewish community signed a cooperation agreement.

photo: Shai Franklin

Tbilisi synagogue, now home to
popular theater company

State media have published articles condemning anti-Semitism, and a state-sponsored radio station broadcasts a special program for Georgians living in Israel. The main problems facing Georgian Jewry are the same as for the general population: pervasive crime, unemployment, and inadequate health care. Jewish organizations report that, overall, the Georgian government is very supportive of the right to emigrate and move freely.

The Jewish community in Tbilisi continues to encounter obstacles in regaining property rights to a 19th-century Ashkenazi synagogue, which was converted into a club during the Communist era and later to a popular theater. The 2002 designation of Georgian Orthodox Christianity as the state religion, and recent acts of violence against other religious minorities, are also of continuing concern to the Jewish community.

return to headings

U.S. POLICY