The so-called ‘velvet season’ has begun in the Georgian Black Sea shore. No long ago there were almost no tourists in Batumi in August, but now the Georgian authorities are doing their best in order to attract tourists to Ajaria. The region has become a symbol of the country’s successful reforms and improving economy. It’s hard to imagine that just recently Ajaria was ruled by a tyrant, Aslan Abashidze, who regime was so badly corrupted.
The Georgian authorities are trying to attract Armenian tourist to Ajaria. That is why they are building a new highway to Armenia. Soon it will take Armenian tourists twice less by half time to travel to Batumi then nowadays.
Georgia is one of the two multinational countries of the Caucasus and its multinational character is its great advantage. Of course in such situation society and government should both work hard in order to solve conflicts and secure rights of minorities. Thus nationalistic pathos of some articles written by narrow-minded authors is deplorable, especially when such texts are published by respectable sources.
The Voice of Armenia has recently published an article by Ruben Grdzelyan devoted to (according to the author) unbearable life of Armenians in Ajaria. Grdzelyan regrets the fact that there are a lot of Muslim people in Ajaria, that more and more Turks and Azerbaijanis are coming to the region. Soon Armenians will have no chance to live there, Grdzelyan says.
His attitude puzzles. One may think that he never heard about global world, multicultural society and integration. His nationalism and Islamophobia are remarkable. He says that no Armenia will invest in Ajaria in such circumstances that Armenians have no chance to open a business in the region and that soon they will be forced to live. However, Grdzelyan have to examples or proves.
We cannot be forced to love this land, says Grdzelyan, we should survive and keep our own traditions, keep our blood. This means that he doesn’t love the country he lives in, the country that’s citizen he is. And he cannot be forced to. That’s all clear.
Georgy Kalatozishvili, Tbilisi. Exclusively to VK
