Monday, October 29, 2007, #206 (1473)

News in Brief:

Russia calls on Georgia to sign non-violence pact for conflict zones
Russia has called on the Georgian government to sign an agreement on non-resumption of hostilities against South Ossetia and Abkhazia, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking with the newspaper Helsinki Sanomat.
He also claimed that Russia has been actively engaged in dealing with Georgia’s domestic problems and talked of human rights violations, freedom of speech infringements and suppression of the political opposition in Georgia.
(Black Sea Press)

Youth activists protest in Tbilisi
On October 26, the youth wing of the opposition coalition staged a protest in Tbilisi, demanding the resignation of the current government.
Participants marched from the state chancellery to the parliament building, protesting increased bread prices and the poor social conditions afflicting the country.
The protestors told journalists of their frustration with the inaction of the government.
 “They stand with their back to us, they are not interested in us, they think only about themselves,” one protestor said.
Another rally was held outside the Republican hospital, protesting the detainment and alleged beating of Georgi Amiranishvili, a member of the recently established Movement for a United Georgia opposition party.
(Black Sea Press)

Patriarchate: Georgian church in Azerbaijan still closed
The Kurmukhi Church of Saint George in Qax, Azerbaijan, is still closed according to the Georgian Patriarchate.
At the beginning of October the Qax regional administration prohibited daily services and shut down the church, the Patriarchate claimed.
On October 17, the Azerbaijani newspaper Echo published an interview with a representative of the Azerbaijani committee for religious organizations, Yagud Alyeva, in which she claimed that the church was originally a Russian Orthodox church, but was renamed a Georgian church when Azerbaijan first became independent.
The Patriarchate insists the church has been Georgian since it was built in the fifteenth century.
(Black Sea Press)

Council of Europe anti-torture committee publishes report on Georgia
On October 25, the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) published a report after its third visit to Georgia earlier this year.
The report states that the treatment of prisoners in Georgia has considerably improved, with only a few recorded cases of mistreatment, and praised the progress made by Georgian authorities in recent years.
It also said that prison overcrowding remains a problem, especially in the pre-trial facility prison No. 5 and calls on the government to address this.
Healthcare provision to prisoners remains insufficient, due to shortages in staff and resources, and the CPT expressed concern that progress made in combating tuberculosis is being undermined by the overcrowding issue.
The government has closed down the Hauptvacht military detention facility in Tbilisi, after the CPT deemed it to be inadequate.
(Black Sea Press)

Estonian defense minister on three-day visit to Georgia
Yaak Aviksos, Defense Minister of Estonia, is due in Tbilisi today, October 29, for a three-day official visit, according to the Georgian Defense Ministry’s press office.
He is due to meet Georgian counterpart Davit Kezerashvili this afternoon and will also hold talks with Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvili and Givi Targamadze, chair of the parliamentary Defense and Security Committee.
(Black Sea Press)

Prime Minister to participate in business forums in Vienna, London and New York
Prime Minister Zurab Noghaideli is due to participate in business forums in Austria, Great Britain and the US over the next two weeks, according to the Prime Minister’s press office.
On October 29, Noghaideli will attend the “Georgian Business and Investment Roundtable” in Vienna, organized by the publication The Economist.
On October 30 he is due at the Financial Times “Invest in Georgia” event in London and on November he is due to attend the “Dow Jones Invest in Georgia” forum in New York.
The forums are meant to familiarize foreign businessmen with the Georgian market and ongoing reforms.
(Black Sea Press)

Military communication exercise finishes
The military communication exercise “Signal 2007” officially finished on October 27.
The Ministry of Defense announced that 68 radio specialists, 10 radio operators and 17 signal officers were trained in the three-week theoretical and practical course.
Large-scale exercise started on October 9 for the Communications Battalion in Saguramo; military servicemen from all services of the Georgian Armed Forces as well as National Guard personnel participated in the trainings.
(Prime News)



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