Bargaining with dead people in Pankisi Ravine

Gela Mtivlsihvili
Information Centre of Khaketi

On September 3, at 5 am 22 year old Aslan Margoshvili and 26 year old Bahaudin Aldamovi (Mothers last name Kavtarashvili) were buried on Duisi cemetery. The police officers and relatives of deceased delivered corpses through the bypass, because Journalists were waiting in the entrance road of Pankisi ravine.

The last two days Pankisi residents urged us to leave. They have told several times that as soon as journalists would have left ravine they would have got corpses. Yesterday night. Yesterday evening Kists decided that if the government does not give the corpses at night, they would begin protest meeting from the next day. Two dead were buried at night so there was no need in protest meetings.

A few hours after the funeral locals covered up with earth five empty graves. It’s your fault that we are covering up with earth graves, if you wouldn’t have come they were given all six bodies.” said young people who live in Dusisi.

Ministry of Internal Affairs today tried to confirm that during Lopota operation that took place to liquidate paramilitaries were no Georgian citizens. Yesterday On September 2 ICK exclusively obtained and published photos of 3 young people Aslan Margoshvili, Bahaudin Almadov and Bahaudin Bgakashvili. MIA didn’t make any comments for whole day about these facts.

Today MIA spread information that from identified 7 bodies 2 are Georgian Citizens.

We want to give new information about liquidated people due to society’s high interest. After expertise and investigative actions it became possible to identify 7 people from liquidated 11. Two out of seven are Georgian citizens. Aslan Margoshvili, birth date:  28/06/1990 and Bahaudin Kavtarashvili birth date: 07/02/1968. 5 bodies are Russian citizens from North Caucasia. One of them Bahaudin Bgakashvili was born in Grozno, on February 10 of 1986. He has relatives in Pankisi. Other identified people are citizens of Russia : Dukvakha Doshuevi birth date: 19/01/1968, birth place Chechnya city Vegeno.  Salam Zaurbekov, birth date: 14/12/1991, birth place Chechnya, city Grozno. Khasiev Jabraili birth date: 24/01/1989 birth place Ingusheti. Musa Aduevi, birth date: 28/03/1981, birth place city Grozno”- Said in the statement of MIA.

According to confirmed information Aslan Margoshvili and Bahaudin Aldamovi corpses were given to relatives near the territory of Gldani prison in a morgue on September 3 at night 3 o’clock. Pankisi ravine residents were refused to transfer Bahaudin Bagakashvili corpse. Police requested that they needed parents or brothers to come to morgue for transferring the body. As Dusisi residents told to ICK Bahaudin Bagakashvili was living for years in village Duisi and he has finished school hear. His brothers and family members are in Austria. They will arrive in Georgia on September 4, early morning.

They gave relatives body with one conditions Journalists shouldn’t know anything. National Movement activists, Police officers and Vahabit’s are standing in all three houses of dead people in Pankisi ravine. They not only disallow journalists to talk with family members but also don’t allow to record roads.