Thursday, July 26, 2007, #141 (1408)

South Ossetian Status Commission Begins Its Work
By Eter Tsotniashvili

PM Zurab Noghaideli chairs the South Ossetian Status Commission

The first session of the state commission, chaired by Prime Minister Zurab Noghaideli, to determine South Ossetian status was held at the State Chancellery July 24.

The commission was first announced by President Mikheil Saakashvili about two weeks ago, when he tasked it with both status determination for the conflict zone and implementation of economic rehabilitation projects.

The commission includes Tbilisi cabinet members, as well as Ossetian representatives selected at an assembly July 22 in the Georgian-controlled village of Tamarasheni. The exact makeup of the commission, Noghaideli said, will be made public on July 28, when the commission convenes in Kurta. Until then, the prime minister declared, all would be welcome in Tbilisi’s newest tool for conflict resolution.

“We started a very important process today. By opening this commission, we’re taking a new step for the united territory of Georgia. The door of the commission is open for all representatives of Tskhinvali region,” Noghaideli announced.

The commission, according to the prime minister, will include five subgroups: education, cultural, financial, economic and justice.

Newly-appointed State Minister for Conflict Resolution Davit Bakradze said he extended the olive branch to residents and representatives of the conflict zone, asking them to join the commission.
“We tried to invite residents of Tskhinvali, and we also addressed JCC South Ossetia co-chair Boris Chochiev by special letter. …Our government’s goal is to determine the region’s future only in a peaceful way, and we asked him not to make any problems for [Ossetians] during their participation in the conference,” Bakradze said.

The head of the Tbilisi-backed temporary administrative unit for South Ossetia, Dmitry Sanakoyev, expressed his satisfaction after the commission’s first session, saying that the interests of the Ossetian people had been well-accounted for.

“The train has started running, and we hope that peace will be reached in our region,” Sanakoyev said.
Opposition politicians were invited to join the commission as well, although only the Republican Party had a representative present for the first meeting.

“It’s logical that our party is participating in this commission, because we’ve been working on conflict resolution tasks since the very first days,” Republican Party member Ivliane Khaindrava commented.
The day after the commission’s inaugural meeting, South Ossetian secessionist officials released a statement blasting the commission process.

“The Georgian government is going to determine the status of South Ossetia with Ossetian betrayers, who were rejected even by their own relatives. …The Ossetian people made their choice in a referendum in 1992…the status of South Ossetia is already determined,” read the statement.



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