Georgian Schools in Gali Region Banned From Teaching Georgian

Georgian Schools in Gali Region Banned From Teaching Georgian

Inhabitants of the Gali region have to take their children to schools in Zugdi, because the Abkhazian Administration forbids the teaching of children in the Georgian language. The people now ask the government of Georgia to help them. Georgian teachers also complain they are experiencing pressure.

These facts have become public knowledge because teachers from the various schools in Gali have spoken out. The teachers claim that they have been contacted several times by the Abkhazian Administration and strictly warned to change all lessons gradually from Georgian to Russian.

The Human Rights Information and Documentation Center contacted one of the teachers in the Gali region. According to the teacher, the situation is very complicated. “The Abkhazian Administration in Gali assembled the Georgian teachers and instructed them to educate the students in Russian. By the start of the next semester, Georgian must be substituted with Russian. They were also interested in our capacity to conduct the classes in Russian. In addition, they threatened to dismiss or punish in some other way, teachers who dare disobey their instructions. If the government of Georgia does not support us, we will have to leave our jobs. We do not want our children to receive their education in Russian.  We are being forbidden from teaching our native language on our own territory. It is hard to believe, but that is reality”.

Since this information was disseminated, the Abkhazian Administration has publicly denied it, claiming that the teachers have not been threatened or blackmailed. Georgian MPs state that the problem is very serious. The MPs believe that if Georgian is replaced with Russian in Gali schools, the Abkhazian Administration should be held responsible.

Nodar Grigalashvili, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Education, Science, Culture and Sport, told us that international organizations have already been informed about this possible danger.

“Nowadays, Georgian books are imported into the Gali region illegally. We experience difficulties paying teachers, because their money is transmitted illegally as well. The teachers who work in the region are heroes. The Abkhazian Administration consider themselves ‘impregnable’. They are irritated because there are still some Georgian schools left”, says Nodar Grigalashvili.

According to Grigalashvili, earlier, the proclaimed presidential representative of Abkhazia, Ruslan Kishmaria and the head of the Gali administration, Kvekveskiri, summoned the principles of the Georgian schools, who were told that Abkhazia was an independent state and everything must be agreed by its leaders.

“It was proclaimed that first year pupils would start their studies in Russian. The principles of the schools were instructed to tot up the number of teachers who can teach in Russian. The principles were promised that those teachers who were not good at Russian would be trained to increase their knowledge of the language. Educating children in Russian from their first class means that the native language will be driven out and finally banned. No man has the right to ban Georgians from receiving their education in their mother tongue on the territory of Georgia. It is the 21st century and this sort of thing no longer happens anywhere”, says Grigalashvili.

He also highlighted that the proclaimed government of Abkhazia intends to discuss the issue on May 12th. “I was told to prepare an announcement of Parliament that will be sent to various international organizations. If on May 12th the government of Abkhazia takes a barbarous decision, we will make the whole civilized world react against it”, says Grigalashvili.

Kakha Lomaia, the Minister of Education and Science, does not deny the problems that Georgian schools experience in the Gali region, though he states that we have false information. “We, the government of Georgia, try hard to protect the fundamental right – to be educated in your mother tongue - on the territory of Georgia. Although there are some problems with the authority, being educated in Georgian is an issue we would never compromise on”, he claims.

The inhabitants of Gali prefer to take their children to Georgian schools in Zugdidi.

Eka Gulua