One more patient died as a result of restrictions fixed by the occupation regime

Lado Bitchashvili, Shida Kartli 

63-years-old Jumber Miladze is one of those deceased patients, who became victims of the restrictions established by the Tskhinvali de-facto government. The man had worsened his health conditions in the past months but the de-facto government of Tskhinvali region did not allow his relatives to take him to the Georgia-controlled territory to take medical treatment there.

Jumber Miladze was taken to Tskhinvali hospital from Akhalgori district, where he stayed during several days, but on May 19, the state of his health conditions particularly worsened and the de-facto government of Tskhinvali decided to allow transportation of the patient to the Georgia controlled territory. The Red Cross took Jumber Miladze from Tskhinvali to the Karaleti village hospital via Ergneti but the patient passed away in the ambulance before reaching the hospital.

The State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia Ketevan Tsikhelashvili said, the Tskhinvali de-facto government does not spare the people living in the occupied territory.  

“Now the expertise is going on. However, according to my information, the man had a stroke. Several days ago, he was taken to Tskhinvali from Akhalgori hospital though transportation is not recommended for similar patients; during several days his family tried to take the patient to the Georgia-controlled territory but were not allowed; in fact it was already late to bring him to our controlled territory that aggravated his state. Unfortunately, he is the next victim of inhuman and unlawful restrictions in Tskhinvali region. Transportation for emergency medical services must not be hindered. Particularly when mostly the residents of Akhalgori district suffer from it that is absolutely inadmissible,” Tsikhelashvili said.

Since September 4, 2019 until now 15 patients died in the occupied Akhalgori district. All of them were denied by the Tskhinvali de-facto government to go to the hospitals in the Georgia controlled territory. However, these people could not get adequate medical assistance in the hospitals located in the occupied territory. 

Lia Chlachidze, who has participated in the Georgian-Ossetia peace dialogue for years, said that what the current de-facto president of Tskhinvali region Anatoli Bibilov does is genocide of the ethnic Georgian population of the occupied Akhalgori district. 

“This regime purposefully kills people, not only Georgians but Ossetians too; however, what Bibilov is doing in Akhalgori, it is purposeful genocide of ethnic Georgian population. He selects people according to their ethnicity and does not allow them to travel to the Georgia controlled territory. He must take care of all citizens. He must not care whether the patient is Miladze, Kudziev, Albolov or Bibilov – he must take care of all residents of the occupied territory being them Ossetians or Georgians,” Lia Chlachidze said and called on the ethnic Ossetian and Georgian people living in the occupied Tskhinvali and Akhalgori districts to protest Bibilov’s unlawful activities and demand him to open the road at least when locals need urgent medical assistance. She recalled the post of the journalist and civil activist from Tkshinvali - Temur Tskhurbat in the social network, who called on the local people. “Friends and non-friends, is not it time to start a dialogue with adequate and inadequate Georgians? Republic of South Ossetia is not a problem for normal relations.”

Lia Chlachidze said that if the discontent of the local population in the occupied Tskhinvali and Akhalgori districts will increase, Bibilov will surrender and will open the road for the locals. 

“The dialogue mentioned by Tskhurbati aims to open the closed space. As soon as the protest increases, Bibilov will surrender and open the roads. When the citizens demanded to open the closed crossing points to get their several-month pensions, Bibilov agreed and opened the crossing points. The same should happen now too. Ossetians and Georgian people must together protest Bibilov’s policy and demand opening of the crossing points, Lia Chlachidze said.