It is neither the first nor the last battle on the streets of Athens this year. But today is the day the public has surrounded parliament as the government tries to pass more measures to cut costs, jobs, services, etc, in order to address the mind-blowing debt the country has. Surely there are more details and larger discussions to have around these issues, but right now it all pales in comparison to what is happening on the streets.
To get updates from Syntagma Square, journalists and frequent guests on citizenreporter, Max and Stacy are on the scene. Of course Al Jazeera also has the streaming images and people in the crowds.
Driving outside of Tbilisi on the way to the ancient city Mtskheta, my hosts and I talk about Georgian language and how it has been effected by decades of Soviet Occupation and migration patterns. We also delve into Russian-Georgian relations today and how war is still very much part of the language and memory of the nation.
You can follow one of the guests on this episode via his twitter account. The other guest will remain anonymous.
“It is hard to speak without any emotion about a conflict when you live it,” a great new friend and journalist explains to me as we drive across busy Tbilisi on a Friday night. “I can talk about Kosovo, Iraq, without getting emotional, but this… its so complicated and has such an impact on my life,” he struggles to find the words to explain why the long standing conflict between Russia and Georgia, especially the 2008 war, is so hard to address and explain without getting angry or frustrated.
Police in Tbilisi sitting around.
It is this complexity that I have brought up, or seems to come up, quite often in the comings and goings of a visiting foreign citizen journalist. I’ve gotten to hear about the experiences of people here, what they were doing to keep safe and protect their loved ones while their home city was being bombed from above. I listen to the stories and then I walk down to a local café with fancy named drinks and free wifi, I struggle to imagine bombs raining down anywhere near this place. Why would anyone agree to do that? Who pushes that button, and goes on with life?
2008. Not 1998. Not 1948. In 2008 the Russian army moved using their justification and the Georgian army responded using their justification. Even if I’ve got the sequence of events wrong, at the most basic level, two armies which are made of human beings, took aim at each other in an effort to damage or destroy the other.
I’m simplifying war, which my wise friend reminds me in words, is more possible when you haven’t lived that war. But I do it because I have studied and I continue to study the world. In my observations and studying I have witnessed that most irreconcilable differences are reconcilable. Most conflicts are created, orchestrated, and inflated by political and military leaders. And beyond who creates the conflict, it is we the citizens of the world who carry out the gruesome inhumane task of trying to destroy one another. Without our cooperation, our hands at the controls, our fingers on the triggers, most wars could not be fought. Even a drone has a pilot somewhere, who is consciously carrying out a task relating to war.
So now for the impossible. Where I lose you because what I invision is considered impossible… even though in terms of our abilities as humans and our collective power… it is physically and mentally possible to do. That is to refuse. Refuse to line up for war. Refuse to pull the trigger. And perhaps most importantly, refuse to believe what you’re told about the mission; that those people over that line deserve to die and that you’re right for carrying out orders to harm them. -OF course- this means both sides. This only works with a cross border, cross cultural, out pouring of some of the greatest bravery the world has ever seen. That two militaries would refuse to take aim at each other. What a beautifully boring war it would be.
As I walk by Georgian Parliament on my way to the nearby café in the morning, I notice two flags always flying out front: The Georgian ride and white flag, and the European Union navy blue with yellow stars flag (Georgia is a part of the Council of Europe among other institutions). When I discuss the position of Georgia in the world, although bordered by nations like Russia and Armenia (to name 2) it is widely proclaimed that Georgia is part of Europe. Like numerous nations located even closer to the heart of the European Union, the goal here is very much to one day be part of the European Union. Why? Although I don’t usually get a specific answer, the implied answer is a sense of belonging. Perhaps also the goal of achieving the quality of life similar to that which it is thought members of the EU enjoy. Or to make it even more basic, one major reason is to further distance this place from Russia, a nation that is – to put it mildly- disliked. As part of not liking Russia, there is the goal to make sure the world knows (as well as Russia itself) that Georgia is very much with those guys over there on the other side of the Black sea. No longer a victim of their occupation but standing on its own two feet with its European friends.
Now compare this sentiment with that in Southern Europe these days, where people are enraged and disillusioned; not exactly with the European Union, but with their own governments who of course are members of the EU and have presided over, if not played a role in, a massive economic collapse and policy failure. While some nations in the EU curse their governments for not representing them in what is financially a very troubled union, here we find those outside wishing to get in. With what seems like very different goals, at least when it comes to the symbolic desire to be EU… maybe Georgians would find more happiness in being a member state, even if the economy looks pretty bad.
In the coming days here in Tbilisi, I’ll of course hear more about this bid to be part of the EU and the primary reasons for it. I’ll report back with what I learn.
I suddenly find myself in the republic of Georgia and the first thing one needs when arriving in a new country such as Georgia is a guide. Mark Mullen knows Georgia, he has been here since the late 90’s and pays close attention to what is going on in the present. Who better to sit down with on my first night in Tbilisi, to talk about this country.
I’m on my way to Tblisi, Georgia, the jewel of the Caucuses. Nestled next to the Black Sea, under the more infamous regions of Russia, and next door to the lovely nations of Armenia, Turkey and Azerbaijan. My focus in Georgia will be digital activism, a topic near and dear to my heart, and of interest to many people in that nation. As I conduct workshops I shall also be learning about the country from people I meet, specifically what is working and what is not working for Georgian citizens today. So stay tuned for podcasts, writing, and surely some video entries! See you in Tblisi!
