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How Can We Clear Away the Smell of Black Gunpowder?

June 30, 2009

Marina Vashakmadze

Nearly a year has passed since then… very long for somebody and like a day for somebody.

What has changed during this time in Georgia? How do people live who endure the terrific war and those who still listen to the news of upcoming war?

I am watching a film. An agitated old woman is telling horrible things. Zaira Kaulashvili:-“I was working on the garden, I was digging out potatoes and my son came; he said we had to leave immediately and I followed him in the clothes I was wearing at the moment. So many people have been killed; both soldiers and civilians”.

Zamira Ismailova because of being nervous is mixing Georgian and Russian languages. “This house was burnt; then the flame went to another house too and 4-5 houses burnt down after one another. We were calling the fire-brigade but nobody worked there; we were calling the first aid department but nobody was working there too. We were sitting and thinking where to call; where we were; who was supposed to take care of us. You cannot imagine what Russian soldiers were doing there. There were a lot of tanks everywhere… a lot of vehicles entered the villages. They were shooting… the houses were being pulled down during 7 days without a stop”.
Known and unknown faces appeared on the screen.

August, war and then – September… October…

Recollections of Nino Tsetskhladze: “The house of my brother-in-law was on fire but I was a bit calm because I hoped he had rescued his family and we did not care about the house. But I could not imagine then that the family was dead lying somewhere. My husband was looking for his brother like a mad. I do not know where he found the dead brother-car; two garages, fire-wood and products were destroyed. My husband was moaning like a wounded bear”.

The wounded, people, crazy faces. A woman is crying: “I am a citizen of Russia but what is going on here…I cannot say even a word… I have sons, and when innocent women, men and children are killed… I cannot speak either, can you understand?”
The only one whom this crying woman applies to is Nino Gvedashvili, the author and director of this documentary film. She titled this film as “Black Gunpowder”. Nino said that everything happened spontaneously. “Like the war broke out very unexpectedly. As soon as we managed to travel in August, we immediately took a video camera and went there”, said Nino.

She was in the conflict region with the film crew. She neither planned subjects nor routes. Life created subjects and film arena. Then was an idea to make a film.

According to Ucha Nanuashvili, an executive director of the Human Rights Center, the idea of the film is to demonstrate that war is horrible and this war should not have happened. “And we wanted to show hard conditions of IDPs. In spite of some conditions and aid these people are forgotten by the government and even by the society”, added Nanuashvili.

In short, they took many videos. A lot of materials were gathered including some shots which were not known for the society, said Nino Gvedashvili. Then she said how they went to Gori, city of tents and how they witnessed the argument between the representatives of the government and the IDPs. Members of the crew switched on the camera and began to record the dispute. IDP is arguing with Koba Subeliani, Minister of Refugees. “Social workers have examined families and granted points to them; if they had collected enough points they were granted with the allowance of 75 or 80 GEL a month”, said Minister. “How long does 80 GEL last you?” answered a woman; others were also telling about their problems – food, mattresses…

Nino Gvedashvili said there was a little misunderstanding while taking the video: “Mr Koba Subeliani came up to me and asked why I was taking the video. I explained to him I was making a documentary film and was recording what I saw. Then he said it was a provocation. When this woman saw the camera she began provocation and actually, it did not happen”.

What was going on in fact? Ruins of houses and people sitting on the ruins of their houses can be seen in the movie; they are desperate, irritated. Somebody might think they are ungrateful but listen to them: “They do not want to speak about mattresses and food. They want to return to their houses and yards though their houses are looted and burnt down.”

“They were looting houses. Women also were looting! Initially they robbed houses and then set houses on fire,” recalled Asmat Baliashvili.

“They brought trucks from Russia and loaded all our property on the cars; after robbing houses they started burning our houses; the sacrifice and loss of Georgia was not worth of it…” said Naira from Liakhvi Valley.

War and people – the movie is very sad and depressing.

Eter Sukhitashvili recalls what was going in Gori on the fifth day of the five-day war. “On August 12 when Georgian troops left their positions in Gori, the Russian tanks entered and occupied the town. When the Russian troops reinforced their positions, Ossetian and Chechen looters entered the town. The residents in the street could not realize what was happening there. The robbers stopped the cars in the streets and seized them away. My neighbor was having his meal and his car was parked in the yard when Ossetians sat in the car and drove it away. The Ossetians noticed another neighbor, Alika Bibilashvili, sitting in the street. When they saw him on their way back they shot and killed him.”

“Many of them died because they were not informed.”

Nino Ghvedashvili recalled the episode: “I was astonished by the fact that Georgian army left the conflict zone without warning people about the danger. People told us they were asking Georgian soldiers what was going on and locals simply followed the army since they guessed something wrong was happening. The state is responsible to warn population about the danger and many people died because of not being informed. They watched TV where national TV Channels reported that Georgian army was controlling 70 % of Tskhinvali; they were fighting for the rest 30 % but in fact, Georgian army was retreating.”

Luisa Mascia, representative of the International Criminal Court saw the film too. “It is very important tool,” she told me when we conversed about her visit to Georgia,” one point is when you are sitting at table and reading report on the war; but another point is watching people who had endured the war.”

However, it is not enough. According to Luisa Mascia, everybody should provide the society, local and international organizations as well as International Criminal Court, with documents, proofs and claimings they have done during the hostilities. “The number first responsibility of the government of Georgia is to investigate every crime that was committed during the war last summer and to submit corresponding documents to the court. However, the government cannot or does not want to carry out the investigation. In this case, the International Criminal Court is capable to take up the investigation.”

At the moment, the Human Rights Center is trying to convince the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in Hague to enjoy proprio motu – right to initiate the investigation.

“Why does not the government appeal to the International Criminal Court?”

“I cannot understand one issue,” said Nino Ghvedashvili, “why does not the Georgian state appeal to the International Criminal Court to launch investigation. We have negotiated with the governmental officials on this issue but they claim they cannot investigate the crimes because they cannot enter the territory; however, there is a large amount of documented materials. We also provided the prosecutor with some materials; the government also sent some materials but the authority does not request the investigation.”

Luisa Mascia said there is enough evidence that demonstrate those crimes that are in the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. These are war crimes and crimes against humanity, because ethnic Georgians were expelled from their places of residence on ethnic grounds. The properties of Georgian people were also destroyed on ethnic grounds.

One more issue is assistance of IDPs. Lusia Mascia pointed out: “Of course humanitarian aid is very important but there is another point that should be taken into consideration by all means. The people lost their houses; lost their properties, family members… and the victimized people need justice. Their rights shall be protected and they shall be compensated.”

Luisa Mascia speaks about the rehabilitation of personal dignity. One more picture from the movie: a middle-aged man is sitting in half-dark room… long pause and he says: “Our youth was brought to the slaughter-field; how are we lucky? We have lost entire Gori district together with Tskhinvali.”

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