Victims of Earthquake Remain Homeless for the Second Time (part I)

In several days, victims of the April 25, 2002 earthquake will become homeless again. The court has decided to evict them from their current houses. They have fifteen days to leave their flats. (photo: Irma Basilahsvili)

Currently, the victims are residing in flats that were purchased by the Tbilisi City Hall after the earthquake. Money was allocated from the “Fund for Liquidation the Earthquake Results” that was created by donations. These people were lodged in those flats when Mikheil Saakashvili was the Chairman of the Tbilisi Municipality and Vano Zodelava was a Mayer. Now, authorities in Tbilisi claim that these people broke into the flats illegally, and are demanding that they leave the flats, which were bought for 4 000 USD years ago. The officials act under the verdict passed by the court.

The problem has originated from the lack of proper documentation such as a transfer report. However, the City Hall handed these people the keys of the new flats during an official ceremony. Maybe this was a premeditated violation and that someone is personally profiting. If we look through the documents at the court, we will observe quite clearly that these people are victims of the earthquake and the city authority purchased these flats for them from the fund.

The victims wonder how much longer they will stay homeless. They have some documents that show that the board of the fund made their documents fraudulent. Victims said that the authority wants them to leave the flats in order to sell them out again and that the authorities sold the flat, which had been already transferred to a victim’s family for the second time.

  Case #1  

Giorgi Aleksaniani, an earthquake victim is disabled. The court concluded that he should also leave his flat. His legal heir and representative is Irma Basilahsvili. According to the documents, Aleksaniani lived in Meidani District, Samghebro # 6. Since the earthquake, it was impossible to live in their house. The conclusion of the specialists confirms the situation.

The Fund for Liquidation of the Earthquake Results was created on May 16, 2002. It was initiated by Tbilisi’s vice mayor Giorgi Sheradze. In fact, flats were purchased with the money allocated in the fund through donations.  

Irma Basilashvili spoke about the situation herself: “The fund purchased the flats eventually. Officials from the fund announced on TV that every victim’s family of the earthquake could apply for a flat. So, our family did so. We submitted all the necessary documents to the fund and they confirmed that we were victims and granted us special number. At that time Zurab Gudavadze was the chairman of the fund. Meeting all demands of the fund, they asked us to find a flat for 4 000 USD in Tbilisi. I found a flat in Merve Legioni District. It is Tsulukidze lane I, B/L 14. The owner of the flat refused to sell the house for less than 4 300USD. We agreed and said that I would add 300 USD and the fund would pay 4 000USD. Everything happened according to the agreement. We were handed the key of the flat at the official ceremony at the City Hall. Zodelava attended the ceremony too and he gave me the key personally. Mikheil Saakashvili and other members of the municipality also attended the event.”

Although, the flats were transferred to the victims, no contract report was drawn and signed. The victims applied to the fund several times, but officials from the fund insisted that everything was in order and that they would receive documents on property very soon.

Basilashvili was visiting the fund twice a week: “I visited the fund several times. Each time, Akaki Gongladze, the chairman of the fund and Nana Chachua, the secretary, told her that under certain circumstances, they preferred to lodge in every victim’s family in the flats and would then sign the contract with them. However, they did not keep their promises. In January of 2003, a criminal investigation was launched on the misappropriating of funds. Consequently, the fund ceased its activities. The investigators met us and asked whether we had bribed the fund.”

In September 2003, Basilashvili applied to the fund again. She received the same answer from the fund representatives - everything was in order and demanded a document proving that her uncle was a disabled person. On May 14, she provided those documents to them. “After that, the officials from the fund told me that there were no problems. Despite that, I visited the fund three times a month. One day, I learned that I was refused to be transferred to the flat. This document is dated by May 28, thus they kept the document in secret for three months,” said Basilashvili.

(part II) http://www.humanrights.ge/eng_/articles.php?id=609

Eka Gulua