Abkhaz fracture

The assault on the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Sukhumi showed that many residents of Abkhazia are looking for any reason to express dissatisfaction with power

In the capital of the self -proclaimed Republic of Abkhazia Sukhumi on July 5, during street unrest and a spontaneous rally, which ultimately led to the resignation of the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Leonid Dznzba, according to the latest data, about 20 people were injured. The rally began after the extraordinary congress of the Abkhaz opposition party of Amtsahara , at which the audience entrusted the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the growth of crime and tried to take the building of the ministry later, at the gates of which they entered into clashes with special forces. Later, the decree on the resignation of Drushba was signed by the leader of Abkhazia Raul Hadimba.

On July 10, a referendum was appointed in Abkhazia on the issue of early presidential elections, initiated by opponents of the current government. The opposition accuses the leadership of Abkhazia of disrupting the referendum, demanding that the autumn vote. Opponents of the authorities believe that this will "better prepare for voting." Hajimba refuses to change the date of the referendum.

The Caucasian political scientist and journalist, editor -in -chief of the Caucasus Times, Islam Timeshev , spoke about the situation today in Sukhumi Radio Liberty:

- What happens in Sukhumi today? How strong is the tension on the streets after yesterday's events?

- Today is more or less calm, the peak of tension came on July 5. The tense situation in Abkhazia has a long history, and yesterday's riots should be considered in the context of several factors. Firstly, these are the May events of 2014, as a result of which Raul Hajimba came to power, leaving supporters of former president Alexander Ankvab behind the flag. Secondly, what is happening was the result of Russian influence, since Moscow leads a multi-vector game with the Abkhaz elite. And every crisis, every round of this political tension always ends with some benefit for Moscow. In the form of expansion of authority, in the form of any by-laws, regarding the capabilities of Russia in the republic. In fact, all this is not new. The crisis of the authorities and its confrontation with the opposition has been lasting since 2014. Because both the power and the opposition are trying to agree in some way, but they will not come to an agreement in any way.

- Why did the protesters concentrate their anger precisely on the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its chapter? Is it true that the republic is overwhelmed by crime? Or was it just one of the reasons?

- Abkhazia was always distinguished by criminogenicity and in the field of security was never prosperous for more than 20 years of actual independence, and the fact of its recognition by Russia, or non -recognition of the rest of the world, did not affect the situation. Of course, with the advent of the last Minister of Internal Affairs, Drushb made some attempts to curb crime. We can recall the first assault on the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Sukhumi with the minister that had now gone through, it occurred in March this year - then there were similar events, people demanded the resignation of the minister due to the fact that the police tried to arrest the former head of the Sukhumi Dranda pre -trial detention center. There is such a prison in Sukhumi, in fact a pre -trial detention center, where people are serving very long terms of imprisonment, often before the sentence. This is the largest prison and, in my opinion, even the only one in Abkhazia. During the detention of its chief, the police used weapons because he refused to stop at their request, he managed to get away from the persecution, and, having arrived at his home, he organized a large rally to which the opposition joined. And it all ended with the storm of the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with similar requirements of the resignation of Drushba. In some way, the head of the Republic of Khadimba managed to resolve the situation, and the Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs remained in power. The current events are, again, the opposition attempts to find a formal reason that can be used for your own purposes. In this case, a certain audio interview was discovered, during which the Minister of Drushba allegedly allowed himself to speak very hard in relation to supporters of the referendum on early presidential elections. The authenticity of this interview, of course, raises questions.

- The topic of the possible accession of Abkhazia to Russia is actively discussing in Abkhazian social networks. You yourself already wrote that the increase or decrease in the number of supporters or opponents of the preservation of the current status of Abkhazia depends primarily on the disappointment in the success of this state project proclaimed in Abkhazia. How much is this disappointment of the inhabitants of Abkhazia in general?

-Firstly, in Abkhaz society there was a turning point-in the assessments of its past and future. After Russia recognized the independence of Abkhazia in 2008, a fairly large national rise was observed. People were inspired by this act of recognition, and after the state project was to develop dynamically in a certain direction. He actually began to develop, it was said about strategic achievements in the economy, in domestic and foreign policy. But over several years of this independence, the situation has not changed dramatically, and even worsened in some industries. Moreover, Abkhazia, I repeat, lost a lot of powers of Russia on its territory. These are domestic political freedoms, and the fact that in foreign policy Abkhazia should now coordinate any of its actions with the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The financial dependence of Abkhazia on Moscow has significantly intensified

On the other hand, the financial dependence of Abkhazia on Moscow has significantly intensified. Against the backdrop of the Russian conflict with Turkey, Abkhazia imposed sanctions against the Turkish Republic and on its territory - but Türkiye was virtually the second market that worked on the territory of Abkhazia and poured significant financial resources through the diaspora through the business. Abkhazia also lost this. Thus, there was a disappointment of a significant part of the population by the actions of the authorities in the implementation of this state project. Thirdly, the demographic situation has seriously changed in Abkhazia. Today, the title ethnos is not unambiguously decisive in the elections, during the same referendum, other percentage communities have, if not mostly votes, then certainly no less than Abkhazians. This factor also warms up protests.

-Two or three years ago, a lot said that Abkhazia was counting on large flows of tourists from Russia, which could support its economy and the standard of living of the population. Then these conversations subsided, although the prerequisites seemed to be, especially after Türkiye and Egypt disappeared from the Russian tourist market. In the last year, it was actively discussed whether they could become a replacement for Sochi and Crimea , but no one even remembered Abkhazia. Why did this happen?

- I have many friends who are involved in Abkhazia in this industry. And I can tell you by the example of specific objects how the situation is developing this season. For example, in Gagra, in one of the most popular tourist destinations among Russians in Abkhazia, almost all hotels are filled, there are no places. Today there is no exact data on the flow of tourists, they will appear later, but it is already clear that Abkhazia is a rather popular direction in the Russian tourism market.

- That is, just in the republic of hotels there are very few, and they are not the best, as far as is known, so the vacation requests of such a huge country as Russia, Abkhazia is not able to satisfy?

- In general, Abkhazia is in demand by the same Russian tourists. There is a certain category of people who go here, to Abkhazia, every year. Such tourists probably occupy half of these hotels. Those Russians who rested in Turkey, in Egypt, simply switched to other warm countries. It is difficult to compare the level of service in Abkhazia with the same Antalya, these are completely different things! And people who are accustomed to such a service as in Turkey are unlikely to change it to Abkhaz resorts.

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  Andrey Sharogradsky

  International Radio Offer Freedom. Author and host of the information and analytical digest, podcast "Time of Freedom"

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  Alexander GOSTEV

  The editor of the RS information service, international observer, author and editor of the heading and podcast "Atlas of the World"

  Gosteva@rferl.org