A New Year’s Present for the Village of Pirveli Otobaia

Late in December, a string of murders in Gali district resulted into a new wave of violence against Georgian residents in the area.  Of those Georgians who were detained from the village of Pirveli Otobaia on December 27 by the Abkhaz, only one Georgian, Gia Tufuria, met the New Year in the solitary confinement cell of the Gali District Police Station.

Tufuria’s brother, Besik Tufuria, is a main suspect in the murder of Alik Khishba, the chief of the Gali District Police Department.

On January 3, Abkhaz law enforcement released Tufuria. Dali Khalvashi, gamgebeli of the village of Otobaia, helped get him released. On January 4, the released man was taken to the Zugdidi hospital. Doctors said that there were some injuries on his body. However, none of them were life-threatening. Tufuria categorically denies the fact of having been beaten when he talks with journalists. However, in private talks he does not keep it a secret that the Abkhaz police beat him during the several days he spent in solitary confinement. According to him, the Abkhaz tried to learn the location of Tufuria’s brother. However, Tufuria insists that he does not know where his brother is. Moreover, he has had tense relations with his brother for a long time. On January 4, Tufuria left Zugdidi for Otobaia.

Nato Berulava, Zugdidi