The United National Movement (UNM) is launching a campaign titled “Remember Abkhazia – Remember the Refugees.” As Beso Shengelia, a member of the opposition party, stated at a briefing, the issue of Abkhazia is disappearing from both the international and domestic political agendas, while the ruling power “is neither capable nor willing to protect Georgia’s national interests.”
According to him, under the rule of “Georgian Dream,” the issue of Abkhazia is gradually fading from the international and domestic agendas. He described this not as an accidental process, but as a direct result of the authorities’ weak, incompetent, and Russia-dependent policy.
“The ruling power, which has formed as an oligarchic regime, cannot and does not protect Georgia’s national interests with the firmness that the country needs at this historical stage. Under their policy, international attention to the Russian occupation, ethnic cleansing, and the gravest crimes committed in Abkhazia is significantly weakening. Meanwhile, our citizens, internally displaced from Abkhazia, still live in extremely difficult social, economic, and living conditions. Unfortunately, there is no decent, systemic, and fair state policy regarding them. This is a difficult, dangerous, and harmful process for the state.
Today, a crucial and extremely important time has come when the issue of Abkhazia must return to both the international and national political agendas. It is right now that the state, society, and the entire political spectrum must once again speak out loudly about the Russian occupation, ethnic cleansing, refugees, and those people who paid the highest price for Georgia’s territorial integrity.
Based on the above, the United National Movement is launching a large-scale campaign – ‘Remember Abkhazia – Remember the Refugees.’
The campaign is based on two main directions and includes ten specific initiatives.
Social track:
- An immediate increase in the 45-lari refugee allowance and pegging it to the subsistence minimum.
- A complete reform of the refugee resettlement program – eliminating corruption, revising the so-called unfair points system, and developing an effective state strategy.
- Creating new social and healthcare programs for refugees and ensuring their genuine accessibility for every beneficiary.
- Introducing a state scholarship for refugee students.
- Launching targeted programs to promote refugee employment.
Non-recognition policy and legal track:
- Holding elections for the Supreme Council of Abkhazia and modernizing the structural units of the Government of Abkhazia.
- Registering and accounting for property located in Abkhazia in a unified system, as well as restoring the presidential program ‘My Home’.
- Preserving the status of Sokhumi State University, strengthening it, and providing institutional support.
- Formulating a clear state policy and strategy to support citizens living in the occupied territories.
- Official recognition of the victims of genocide and ethnic cleansing, granting them the appropriate legal status, and aligning their social guarantees with the rights of war veterans and victims.
I would particularly like to draw attention to the issue of the victims of genocide and ethnic cleansing. According to preliminary data published on the official website of the Supreme Council of Abkhazia, up to 5,200 peaceful citizens were killed in Abkhazia as a result of brutal torture. These people are not just statistics; they are our fellow citizens, a symbol of our national tragedy, and living proof of the ethnic cleansing carried out by Russia.
We have no right to forget these people. State is obliged to grant them the appropriate legal status, recognize their pain, and ensure a dignified state attitude towards them.
The issue of Abkhazia cannot be a forgotten topic. This is a matter of Georgia’s national security, historical justice, and state dignity,” — stated Beso Shengelia.
