MDF
#1, 1-31 January, 2021

Incident in Buknari

The January 13 confrontation on religious grounds between local Muslim and Christian residents of Buknari village of Chokhatauri Municipality prompted an increased number of statements inciting Islamophobic sentiments. The incident erupted after Muslims arranged a shrine in a private house purchased by them for holding prayers. They were opposed by Christian residents of Buknari that ultimately resulted in a skirmish. Commenting on the incident, a number of media outlets, organizations and representatives of the society made Islamophobic statements, describing the Muslim community’s demands as an attack against Christians and accusing them of radicalism and aggression.  

Besides Islamophobic comments, sexist statements were also made on ultranationalist platforms, mainly in connection with the activities of female politicians.

Ethnic Segregation of “Georgians and Muslims”

Politicians

Mtavari Arkhi TV, Mtavari, January 15, Mtavari Arkhi, Post Factum, January 17, Marshalpress, January 17
Nino Tsilosani, Georgian Dream: “Georgian and Muslim people have nothing to share between each other either in this village [Buknari], or other village of Guria and elsewhere throughout Georgia. It is our historical and cultural achievement that we, the people of various confessions, cohabitate together.”

Islamophobia

Media

Obieqtivi, Gamis Studia, January 20 
Nino Ratishvili, host: “So, I am interested, I said that such an attitude, such a globalist, Neo-Trotskyist policy, the implementation of which will already start in the world today… In this situation, I am afraid that our values will depreciate so much that it will lead to strengthening of eastern regional groups, because there will be those Islamic principles there, which will strongly protect their values… It’s a bit aggressive, but I am saying nothing related to Sufism.” 

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gabritchidze, January 14
Tatia Gabritchidze, host: “We live in one country and it actually means nothing, does not it? Yes, we are brothers, as they say, both Christians and those people, who are radical Muslims, live in Khulo, but we see that they absolutely do not think that we are brothers and do not expect that everything will be normalized; on the contrary, some statements are made saying that ‘you go away and we will look after this region.”

Georgia and World, January 20
Eka Naskidashvili, journalist: “We do not have academic circles in the country, we do not have politicians, diplomats, and meanwhile, the Treaty of Kars has expired… Is the recent incident that occurred in Chokhatauri on religious grounds linked to the Treaty of Kars?”

News Front, January 14
Gedeon Ivanashvili, author: “We will be facing a lot of other provocations on religious grounds in Georgia like it happened in Adjara, a village of Buknari yesterday. What did we see there? – Outrageous Islamists, who were brought from various villages in an organized manner to confront police. The oppressed Georgian state is looking at it open-mouthed. The Ambassador of Israel also “spread his wings” as soon as the non-governmental organizations protecting Islamists’ rights gave him a small reason to act this way. One and the same organizations that are direct enemies of the Orthodox Church in Georgia – EMC and TDI are taking care of both Islamists’ rights and real or false manifestations of anti-Semitism.”

Civil society organizations

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gabritchidze, January 14
Dimitri Lortkipanidze, the Primakov Georgian-Russian Public Center: “I am talking about Buknari, a village of Buknari in Chokhatauri district; and who was from the village of Buknari? Let’s remind our respected society. Tamaz Chaghalidze… a person who was fighting on the side of the Islamic State… Islam, generally, unites about 70 sects and there are especially aggressive and totalitarian sects among these 70 sects. This is the order of the Islamic State that followes Salafi-Sunni Wahhabism…”

Society

Obieqtivi, Namdvili Ambebi (Real News), January 15 
Mamuka Areshidze, expert: “It is just what we call political Islam and there is nothing new about it. It continues for years in Georgia, not only on the territory of Georgia, but throughout the entire region… Turkey, Iran and entire Arabic world are involved in it… Some countries are using religion to achieve their political goals; additionally, they are using the local political force, because in this particular case [Buknari], the National Movement was involved. The fact that one group arrived [at Buknari] from Adjara, they are not followers of traditional Islam, they are not the parish of Batumi mosque, but rather they are people, who are acting with the financial support of a foreign country, the third force.”

Georgia and World, January 20
Soso Tsintsadze, political analyst: “The Guria incident is extremely dangerous. The Treaty of Kars will be prolonged without our country being informed about it. We will not know what will be changed in the provisions of this treaty and here we face the same problem, we do not have relevant specialists and ultimately, it will lead to diminishing Georgia.”

Gender discrimination

Media

Alt-Info, January 15
Zurab Makharadze, host: “A blond, runty woman [Nino Tsilosani], who cannot be there not only in the context of Muslims, but generally as a mediator… It was Georgian Dream’s crisis management and they sent this woman; nobody even asked a question: Muslims, crisis, and we are sending this blond woman…”

Alt-Info, January 15 
Irakli Martinenko, host: “Generally, it is hilarious when a woman participates in negotiations during a conflict!”

Xenophobia

Media

Alt-Interview, January 26
Tatia Gabritchidze, host: “Local, ethnic Azerbaijanis have intensified their efforts in Marneuli. We saw video footages, where they are confronting the church and in this particular case, a cleric, not allowing them to cultivate the lands, which had been cultivated by clerics for years… Some people emphasized there that this conflict and this motivation of Azerbaijanis have intensified following the Karabakh conflict. They have become stronger and more aggressive. Do you think that this is the case and how can this Karabakh conflict and Azerbaijan’s strengthened positions affect Georgia, especially on the part of ethnic Azerbaijani residents?”

Turkophobia

Politicians

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gabritchidze, January 18 
Emzar Kvitsiani, politician: “The fact is that Turkey is interested in our territories and they even seized some of our territories near [the village of] Kirnati.”

Media

Asaval-Dasavali, January 11-17 
Dito Chubinidze, journalist: “The deeper Georgia goes inside a Turkish whirlpool and the more Kars-Akhalkalaki railway links we build to connect with Turkey, the more the process of Adjara’s Turkification will be accelerated!.. One damned day, the Turks may steal Batumi built with Turkish money!”

News Front, January 21
Levan Adeishvili, author: “It will also seize the opportunity and encourage Turkey in Adjara! It does not need many efforts to incite salivated Ottoman, and after it [Turkey] deploys a [military] base in Batumi, then jump on [Recep Tayyip] Erdoğan’s penis! I see the same narrative behind the Guria developments, directly or indirectly! Shortly speaking, there is a horse race of international leaders of balls in Gurjistan!” 

Georgia and World, January 20
Beso Barbakadze, journalist: “It is no secret that over the past years, it has frequently “slipped out” of Turkish officials’ mouth that a great part of Adjarian territories belonged to them and that they will soon regain control over Batumi. However, instead of having a strict reaction, our government prefers some kind of diplomacy. But in fact, it is not diplomacy but rather an expression of fear, an expression of readiness for compromises and just due to this, everyone, who are not reluctant, are raising territorial claims against us.” 

Civil society organizations

Georgia and World, January 20,
Dimitri Lortkipanidze, the Primakov Georgian-Russian Public Center: “There is nothing new about the fact that Turkey is carrying out religious, political and economic expansion in Georgia. We have been watching this process for years and it’s still underway. In fact, the problem is not with an imperialistic policy pursued by our neighboring country that has deep historical roots, but with treacherous approaches existing in our political system, which actually rule out Georgia’s national interests. I mean the appeasement, vassal policy that our governments, both previous and present, were pursuing with “enviable” success.”

Asaval-Dasavali, January 25-31
Nikoloz Mzhavanadze, Union of Human Rights’ Defenders: “A mosque has been built in the village of Nasakirali with Turkish money and nobody shows any interest about it, especially as toilets have been opened in Georgian churches and monasteries in Turkey and Hereti, which has been misappropriated by Azerbaijan!.. Treacherous Saakashvili, treacherous Baptist church leader, treacherous Public Defender and betrayers recruited by Turkey – Piruz Tsulukidze and Tariel Nakaidze - are sparing no efforts to ensure that Turkey grabs Adjara and Kvemo Guria!”

News Front, January 30
Besarion Mikava, Iberian-Caucasian Movement: “… and Erdoğan wants to seize the territory from Batumi to Guria (he has already seized 30% of Georgian territory with the help of Lenin who hated Georgians). Today, Lenin-Shevardnadze’s communists sold for dollars and acting under the cover of liberals and nationally-minded people are trying to implement this plan.”

Society

Asaval-Dasavali, January 25-31
Levan Dolidze, author: “Georgia faced no Turkish threat in the epoch of Stalin and Beria, because the huge Soviet Empire was standing behind small Georgia; but now we are standing alone in front of Turkey and we see that the Turks are creeping closer…I am saying bluntly – Batumi is a Turkish city and it is already lost!”

Discrimination on religious grounds

Media

Alt-Info, Analytics, January 13
Zurab Makharadze, host: “You must make this decision on your own… and when someone asks you whether should there be universal equality in Georgia? Should there be pluralism? Should all religions be equal? Should we respect everybody’s opinions? You must answer – No. Georgian Orthodox people should enjoy privileges in Georgia and be given priority… Like Turks in Turkey, Jews in Israel, Armenians in Armenia and Azerbaijanis in Azerbaijan.”

Homophobia

Politicians

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gbritchidze, January 16
Levan Chachua, Georgian Idea: “The first [Georgian Dream’s mistake] – I have already mentioned that they picked them up from grave and reached cohabitation with a bloody gang of the National Movement, and they together legalized this LGBT propaganda, the so called violent anti-discrimination law.”

Media

Asaval-Dasavali, January 11-17
Giorgi Gigauri, journalist: “[Nino] Lomjaria teaches the world renowned doctors, who nurtured many generations of medics, what pederasty and transsexualism is!”

Civil society organizations

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gabritchidze, January 27
Dimitri Lortkipanidze, the Primakov Georgian-Russian Public Center: “When the issue is about teenage pedagogy and specific persons behind this pedagogy, who, under the anti-discrimination law, have the right to acknowledge their sexual orientation and gender identity, it is impossible not to take my, as a parent’s right into consideration not to allow such teacher to join the learning process… One thing is that we all are equal regardless of our skin color, race, social and political affiliations, but the other thing is the rights that should be restricted, considering ethno-psychology and the constitution, and in such case, discrimination of men will no longer take place. This is just where the process called discrimination frequently begins from.”

Anti-Western sentiments

Politicians

Alt-Info, January 22
Guram Palavandishvili, Georgian Idea: “They hate our values, our church… they hate us… If he [Joe Biden] proves to be more active, homosexual lobbyist, it may further harm us.”

Media

Asaval-Dasavali, January 11-17
Giorgi Gigauri, journalist: “Yes, America of Joe Biden who captured the presidency will soon launch an LGBT-Sorosist attack against the entire world, especially Orthodox Georgia, where spreading out a carpet to invaders is practiced quite well!”

Alt-Info, Interview together with Tatia Gabritchidze, January 23
Tatia Gabritchidze, host: “The issue is about LGBT community and the minority which is imposed on us, directly or indirectly. We deem it unacceptable. The same messages are coming from the West, from our partners who are telling us that these people are our citizens, and they are imposing the laws that are wrapped quite well and by the way, our government cannot either hamper or oppose them. These laws were not imposed during Biden’s administration, but rather under the previous administrations. Now, when Biden’s interests have become so clear about whom he will support and who will become his priority, we probably will have, when needed, to develop new draft laws. If previously we had to adopt gender quotas, now we may have to adopt certain quotas for LGBT people, or ethnic and religious minorities.”

News Front, January 26
Joni Eltonashvili, author: “Joe Biden focuses on transgender people – what is Georgian government’s reaction? The truth is more important in this half-joking headline than a joke – Joe Biden assumed the presidency with promoting so called transgender people – individuals with changed hormones and gender. Initially, he appointed a transgender individual named Rachel like a woman, with the surname Levine as an assistant health secretary. Now, he cancelled the decision made by his predecessor, Trump and returned transgender people, like Levine, to the army… This is how Biden thinks – a marasmatic, elderly President who noted in his decree that “sexual identity” should not be the reason to disqualify a person for military service, because diversity is the strength of the USA.”

Newsletter was developed by Media Development Foundation (MDF) within the frameworks of the Promoting Integration, Tolerance and Awareness Program in Georgia, supported by USAID and implemented by UNAG

Opinions and ideas provided in this newsletter are those of the Media Development Foundation (MDF) and do not represent the official position of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the UN Association of Georgia.

Media Development Foundation

http://notophobia.ge/

http://www.mdfgeorgia.ge

info@mdfgeorgia.ge

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