Baku-Tbilisi-Karsi railway for cargo transportation from Afghanistan

Georgia offers NATO cargo transportation from Afghanistan through Baku-Tbilisi-Karsi railway. Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs that the Minister of Foreign Affairs Maia Panjikidze commented about it during the ISAF meeting at the NATO ministerial.

The problem of fake lubricants that are pervading Georgian market since 2005, remains persistant; it affects consumers’ rights and the state budget alike. To overcome the problem, the Union of Oil Product Importers and Consumers of car oil importers held a confermec on April 17, 2013 summoning all interested sides including governmnet. All of them agreed on partnership.

Strange as it seems, in 2004-2007, over USD 6 million worth of real estate or movable property was handed by private business and individuals to Georgian state, while bigger part of population lives below the poverty level. Ex-administration described this sudden gush of charity on the part of Georgian citizens, as gifts. Legal experts call it the state racket.

The increasing Russian-Turkish trade prospects unfold new vista of economic development for Georgian conflicting regions of Abkhazia and South Osetia, offering best direct on-land connections to Russia and Turkey.

Interview with expert Kakhi Kakhishvili

There was much pother with regard to 19 April action but nothing happened –it was an ordinary rally, resembling many others seen in Georgia. The oppositionist President, Mayor of Tbilisi and ex-Premier Merabishvili announced the beginning of national movement. Before that there was a scandalous declaration of Data Akhalaia, brother of Bacho Akhalaia, one of the Nationals’ leaders; after that expenses of State Security were made public. Expert Kakhi Kakhishvili considers that 19 April revealed that NM’s rhetoric is a farce.

Several months ago, IPR research, which functions at Palitra Media House, conducted a survey that revealed the winner of the previous year, among the ambassadors. The result was based on polling of political figures, political scientists, journalists and representatives of NGOs and International organizations. Georgian Journal published an article about it. As a conclusive stage of the research, on April 17, at Tbilisi Marriott Hotel, Georgian Journal organized its traditional event “Diplomat Party” for the second time.

What was changed in Georgia after the announced rally of April 19 and what clout did the National Movement show that day? Does it prove the National Movement to be a strong opposition? Georgian Journal interviewed the member of the majority faction of the Parliament, head of the Parliamentary Committee for the Protection of Environment of the Parliament Giorgi Tsagareishvili.

Hidden opposition of former Defense and Interior Ministers

Vano Merabishvili headed the Ministry of Interior Affairs from the end of 2004 till summer of 2012. It was something really unprecedented in Saakashvili’s administration – we remember quite well the staff ‘merry-go-round’ of those times.

Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili continues to be the most popular political leader in Georgia, and 60 percent rate the Georgian Dream Coalition as the “party” closest to them, according to the findings of a public opinion survey released here today by the National Democratic Institute (NDI). Fifty-six percent named the United National Movement (UNM) as the strongest opposition party in the country. Ivanishvili scored a 75 percent favorable rating, with Speaker Davit Usupashvili increasing his favorable rating to 66 percent, followed by Members of Parliament Tina Khidasheli, Eka Beselia and Zviad Dzidziguri. Minority Leader Davit Bakradze is the most popular opposition leader, whose favorable rating increased to 48 percent.

Georgian Journal contacted Irine Giviashvili, art historian, a research fellow of Giorgi Chubinashvili National Center of Georgian Art History and Monument Protection, who resides in Ireland and asked her to talk about the negotiations between Georgian and Turkish sides about the faults of restoration process and future development.

Level of education as such, including its content and quality, always leaves a lot to desire whenever and wherever in the world this education is taking place. Education is never enough and it is never satisfactory, never completely up to the point and never fully compatible with the requirements of time.

Cell service tariffs increased indirectly by about 4% after all three cell operators of Georgia stopped paying commissions to express-pay terminals and banks for prompt recharging of consumer’s balance.
Since April 1, 2013 subscribers of Magti, Geocell and Beeline, three cell companies operating in Georgia, have to pay commissions if they want to recharge their cell call balance instantly through express-pay terminals or banking on-line payment system. This commission was paid by cell operators up to this April to subsidize the developing express-pay system and raise awareness of consumers in alternative balance recharging tools.

Millions were embezzled from Georgian state budget to cover expenses of the family members and relatives of the President of Georgia, ex-government-and-majority members, also to pay off travel expenses of some guests, particularly females arriving in Georgia. Georgian President calls this a simple hospitality. New government plans to set up a special parliamentary commission to investigate the unreasonable state expenses.

A lot of people confuse Georgia with the state Georgia in the United States of America. Georgians living in the United States seem to have to explain their nationality twice to avoid misunderstandings about the deep American South. It wasn’t too long ago that ESPN confused the two when Georgia played Spain in a soccer game September 2012. ESPN had a thumbnail flag of the United States in the score bar.

Stacey Kent, born in New Jersey, USA, has moved to UK to study there. Since 1990, her career was taking off at Cafe Boheme in London’s Soho. Her first album ‘Close your Eyes’ was released in 1997. Since then, Kent released 9 albums. In 2002, Stacey received BBC Award as the Best Vocalist. Her Albums ‘The Boy Next Door’ and ‘Breakfast on the Morning Tram’ have been certified Golden and Platinum discs in France. In 2011, Stacey released an album titled ‘Dreamer in Concert’, which is the first live album of hers, recorded at La Cigale Theatre, Paris. The Georgian audience had a pleasure to listen to ‘Dreamer In Concert’ live at Tbilisi Event Hall on April 20.

They’re stealing copper wiring from streetlights, stripping it from electrical substations, and burrowing into the ground for it as if mining precious metal. Always a problem, metal scavengers have become more brazen in the economic downturn, authorities said, sometimes endangering public safety across Georgia and even in thea USA: Philadelphia and South Jersey.

On April 18, the personal exhibition of Levan Mosiashvili titled “Georgia in Love” opened at the National Library of the Parliament of Georgia. The painter has been working in France for the past 18 years and is one of the most successful Georgian artists in Europe. This fact was confirmed by his personal expositions held at various prestigious galleries of different countries. This is his first exhibition in his homeland.

One of the Boston bombers Tamerlan Tsarnaev was trained at seminar conducted by Georgian special services with Americans, Russian “Izvestia” informs.

At one time, archpriest Grigol Gogichadze voiced the will of Sandro Girgvliani’s (divulged criminal case in which Interior Ministry’s high-ranking persons were involved) mother and expressed doubt that Irina Enukidze (Girgvliani’s mother) was poisoned. The archpriest got in touch with our Holding again.
Father Grigol Gogichadze: I called the ‘National Movement’ a Satanist sect. This filthy force almost drew the church to dissidence. They did their best to win over the clergy and blackmail them – they reminded some of them of old sins and human weaknesses, others were defamed and struggle against them began by using the clergy who were implanted by them. The ‘Nationals’ attempted to bring priests to the 19 April action. I know what was going on at that time but I won’t indulge in saying everything.

Introduction of psychologists’ institution to the penitentiary system is a new initiative that has been functioning for several months. It already gave results as the government aims to decrease number of prisoners in Georgia through prevention of crime and by helping the prisoners in re-socialization and adaptation to the society. Ekaterina Pachulia, Head of the Social Affairs Unit of Penitentiary Department, one of the initiators of implementing the psychologists’ institution in this system talked with Georgian Journal.

In summer of 2013, 7th Russian military base in the occupied Apkhazeti will replenish its araments in the form of upgraded armored vehicles. Specifically, Russian Defence Ministry is set to deliver 40 armored vehicles of BTR-82à type to the said base on the occupied territories to replace BTR-80 type vehicles with much weaker fire power.

For his active collaboration and outstanding contribution to the development of scientific/scholarly relations with Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, by the decision of the Academic Council of the University on the 15th of April of the year of 2013, the prominent British Kartvelologist (scholar of the Georgian culture and literature) Professor Emeritus of the University of London Donald Rayfield has been awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa of Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. The decree was signed by the Rector of the University Alexander Kvitashvili. The ceremony which was widely attended by the enthusiastic public was held on April 19 at Tbilisi State University. Donald Rayfield’s closest fellow-scholars, the Georgian doctors of linguistics and philology Innes Merabishvili, Tinatin Margalitadze, Shukia Apridonidze, Avtandil Arabuli, Lali Ezugbaia, Ariane Chanturia, Rismag Gordeziani and Elguja Khitibidze participated in the event which had attracted the attention of the entire Georgian academia.

Researchers worldwide have discovered that eating fish regularly – one or two servings weekly – may reduce the risk of diseases accompanying us from the very childhood of ours. Fish is low in fat and it is a great source of omega-3 (an unsaturated fatty acid that occurs naturally in fish oil and is valuable in reducing blood-cholesterol levels). It can contribute to the health of brain tissue and the retina (the light sensitive tissue lining the inner surface of the eye).

Christian Orthodox Religion in Georgia is a sacred topic, not to be discussed or criticized at any given point. No religious person likes to have his beliefs questioned or threatened, not even to be debated. Most fevered religious followers, including a large number of mamaos (Georgian priests) have very limited knowledge of the bible or the teachings of Jesus Christ. If they did not, they would know that judging other people is not considered a Christian characteristic to be proud of in the Good book. I’ve tried to talk to a mamao once, asked him about Saint George and his origins. He looked right through me and answered only when my father asked him the same question. He did not know the answer. A religious friend of mine was seven months pregnant and went to ask her mamao if it was okay to skip markhva because her doctor advised her to. Her mamao said the doctor worked for the devil and to starve herself if she wanted her child to go to heaven in the future. If she had listened to him she and her child might have ended up there sooner than later.

Americans don't know much about Chechnya. The most recent conflict rekindled around the time Putin and the FSB was given power in Russia at the end of 1999 and beginning of 2000, and lasted until around 2007. Unlike the Chechen war in the 90's, this was not simply a nationalistic insurgency, but had a strong element of international political islam.