Epidemic of telephone terrorism in Georgia

Georgy Kalatozishvili, Tbilisi. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

Georgia has been in a fever for several days: eight times “prank callers” have warned about bombs in the airport, the parliament and leading TV-companies. Most often they call the emergency number 118, say that a bomb has been planted and hang up. It is turning into an epidemic.

TV news starts with reports on a fresh call and description of further events: the airport was evacuated, flights were cancelled, people could fly only in three to four hours, after bomb technicians complete checking the building. Those who wanted to change planes lost their money because in other countries nobody would compensate them for financial damage. However, the Georgian state wouldn’t compensate either – the law don’t require this.

The popular TV-companies Rustavi-2, Imedi, and Maestro had to interrupt broadcasting and work in old uncomfortable studios in different buildings. Journalists helplessly watched detector dog handlers who tried to find non-existent bombs in the buildings and yards. Those who call are mostly children. However, according to the law, any signal about terrorism, any hint, should be checked, because if the ninth call is true, any officials who don’t react or take measures would be sent to prison for many years.

The gloomy telephone jokes influence the work of the whole state system and the most important state institutes – MPs and staff of the parliament were evacuated, an important session of a parliamentary committee was interrupted. Hundreds of policemen stand in a cordon and don’t protect banks, jewellery stores and common citizens on the streets.

Each call costs a million dollars. And we cannot say that the law-enforcement system shows helplessness or non-professionalism. All eight “pranksters” were arrested the same day. How the special services detect them is a professional secret.

Only two of the eight appeared to be over-age. They can be sent to prison for three years. The others are teenagers and children aged from 8 to 13. The law doesn’t require any punishment for them. Only an “explanatory talk” with their parents is possible. All of the young offenders admitted that they called because wanted to watch an intensive reaction by the police, which they saw on TV talking about evacuation, cordons and major operations connected with “a planted bomb.”

Of course, they don’t understand significance of their deeds. However, the authorities intend to stiffen punishments for such a crime: up to seven years of imprisonment for adults. But children cannot be punished. “Then, we will punish the parents,” legislators state and are developing a draft according to which parents will have to pay a fee of about $3000. However, others state that it is illogical to punish people who haven’t done anything bad. “They are guilty because couldn’t watch their children,” the authors of the draft say. But how can you watch an eight-year old boy? Everybody has mobile phones today. Should phones be closed in a special box? It’s only a phone, not a gun!