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Institute for War & Peace Reporting, UK
IWPR CAUCASUS REPORTING SERVICE, No. 640
May 9, 2012
GEORGIA'S ARMENIANS IN VOTING ROW
Residents of Georgia with dual nationality unhappy at losing chance to
take part in Armenia's election.
By Maia Ivelashvili
Armenian nationals living in Georgia will not be able to vote in their
own country's parliamentary election on May 6 following a decision to
restrict polling rights to diplomats.
The decision was announced by the Armenian embassy in the Georgian
capital Tbilisi, where expatriates and dual passport-holders would
have gone to vote.
There are 350,000 and 400,000 ethnic Armenians living in Georgia,
mainly in the southern Samtskhe-Javakheti region. It unclear how many
of them hold Armenian as well as Georgian passports. They do not
advertise the fact since in most cases, it involves breaking the law.
Nonetheless, some Armenians in Samtskhe-Javakheti are furious at being
deprived of a chance to vote on May 6.
`I don't know how exactly many people intended to take part in the
election, but almost all my friends who have Armenian citizenship were
planning to go to Tbilisi on May 6,' Sergei Finadyan, who lives in the
region's main town of Akhaltsikhe, said. `Restricting the rights of
Armenian nationals living in Georgia is a bad decision. Thanks to
television, the internet and our personal contacts, we have managed to
form views on what's happening in Armenia and we were prepared to
support candidates.'
Most of those who took out Armenian citizenship did so for a specific
reason - to be able to work in Russia. Tbilisi and Moscow have had no
diplomatic relations since they fought a brief war in 2008, and all
Georgian nationals need visas to enter Russia.
Georgian law states that citizens can only hold dual nationality under
exceptional circumstances, and this requires presidential approval.
`Not that many ethnic Armenians have dual citizenship in Georgia - by
legal means, in particular,' Arnold Stepanyan, head of the
non-government group Multinational Georgia, said. `Those who do hold
an unofficial second citizenship will do everything they can to hide
the fact.'
Mari Mikoyan, an ethnic minorities expert with the office of the
Public Defender, Armenia's ombudsman, said that based on figures
supplied by the embassy in Tbilisi, `There are up to 1,000 Armenian
citizens living in Georgia with dual citizenship. That doesn't include
Armenian nationals who are in Georgia temporarily, for whatever
reason.'
Lasha Chkadua, governor of Samtskhe-Javakheti region, confirmed that
dual nationality was largely a hidden affair, making it hard to judge
how many people might be missing out on their right to vote in
Armenian polls.
`There are no official statistics for the number of Armenian nationals
living in Georgia. Most of those who took out Armenian citizenship did
not renounce Georgian nationality, so it's difficult to give a clear
answer to this question,' he said.
Many of Georgia's ethnic Armenians live double lives. From spring to
autumn, substantial numbers - typically young men - go off to either
Russia or Armenia to earn money, and then return to live with their
families in Georgia over the winter.
`Every year I spend a few months living with my relatives in Tbilisi,'
Ruzanna, a 27-year-old Armenian from Tbilisi, said. `It turns out I
won't be able to vote in the election. I'm a citizen of Armenia and I
spend most of my time living in Yerevan, so why should I lose my right
to vote?'
Experts doubt that votes cast by people living in Georgia will have
much impact on the outcome of the poll. But Armenian passport holders
said that was no reason to deny them the vote.
`Every vote is important and needed in a parliamentary election,
especially in a small country like Armenia,' Finadyan said. `If you
compare the number of Armenians living in other countries with the
number resident in Armenia, it is a lot bigger. I think they need to
take part in elections.'
Maia Ivelashvili is director of the regional TV company Channel 9 in Georgia
IWPR CAUCASUS REPORTING SERVICE, No. 640
May 9, 2012
GEORGIA'S ARMENIANS IN VOTING ROW
Residents of Georgia with dual nationality unhappy at losing chance to
take part in Armenia's election.
By Maia Ivelashvili
Armenian nationals living in Georgia will not be able to vote in their
own country's parliamentary election on May 6 following a decision to
restrict polling rights to diplomats.
The decision was announced by the Armenian embassy in the Georgian
capital Tbilisi, where expatriates and dual passport-holders would
have gone to vote.
There are 350,000 and 400,000 ethnic Armenians living in Georgia,
mainly in the southern Samtskhe-Javakheti region. It unclear how many
of them hold Armenian as well as Georgian passports. They do not
advertise the fact since in most cases, it involves breaking the law.
Nonetheless, some Armenians in Samtskhe-Javakheti are furious at being
deprived of a chance to vote on May 6.
`I don't know how exactly many people intended to take part in the
election, but almost all my friends who have Armenian citizenship were
planning to go to Tbilisi on May 6,' Sergei Finadyan, who lives in the
region's main town of Akhaltsikhe, said. `Restricting the rights of
Armenian nationals living in Georgia is a bad decision. Thanks to
television, the internet and our personal contacts, we have managed to
form views on what's happening in Armenia and we were prepared to
support candidates.'
Most of those who took out Armenian citizenship did so for a specific
reason - to be able to work in Russia. Tbilisi and Moscow have had no
diplomatic relations since they fought a brief war in 2008, and all
Georgian nationals need visas to enter Russia.
Georgian law states that citizens can only hold dual nationality under
exceptional circumstances, and this requires presidential approval.
`Not that many ethnic Armenians have dual citizenship in Georgia - by
legal means, in particular,' Arnold Stepanyan, head of the
non-government group Multinational Georgia, said. `Those who do hold
an unofficial second citizenship will do everything they can to hide
the fact.'
Mari Mikoyan, an ethnic minorities expert with the office of the
Public Defender, Armenia's ombudsman, said that based on figures
supplied by the embassy in Tbilisi, `There are up to 1,000 Armenian
citizens living in Georgia with dual citizenship. That doesn't include
Armenian nationals who are in Georgia temporarily, for whatever
reason.'
Lasha Chkadua, governor of Samtskhe-Javakheti region, confirmed that
dual nationality was largely a hidden affair, making it hard to judge
how many people might be missing out on their right to vote in
Armenian polls.
`There are no official statistics for the number of Armenian nationals
living in Georgia. Most of those who took out Armenian citizenship did
not renounce Georgian nationality, so it's difficult to give a clear
answer to this question,' he said.
Many of Georgia's ethnic Armenians live double lives. From spring to
autumn, substantial numbers - typically young men - go off to either
Russia or Armenia to earn money, and then return to live with their
families in Georgia over the winter.
`Every year I spend a few months living with my relatives in Tbilisi,'
Ruzanna, a 27-year-old Armenian from Tbilisi, said. `It turns out I
won't be able to vote in the election. I'm a citizen of Armenia and I
spend most of my time living in Yerevan, so why should I lose my right
to vote?'
Experts doubt that votes cast by people living in Georgia will have
much impact on the outcome of the poll. But Armenian passport holders
said that was no reason to deny them the vote.
`Every vote is important and needed in a parliamentary election,
especially in a small country like Armenia,' Finadyan said. `If you
compare the number of Armenians living in other countries with the
number resident in Armenia, it is a lot bigger. I think they need to
take part in elections.'
Maia Ivelashvili is director of the regional TV company Channel 9 in Georgia