Abkhazian opposition demands government be dismissed, Russia rejected
Ultimatum to the President of Abkhazia
The opposition in Abkhazia gave President Aslan Bzhaniya two weeks to fulfill a list of their demands. If nothing changes after this period, the opposition is threatening mass protests. One condition is the resignation of the government, but more significant, and practically impossible, are demands to abandon several agreements with Russia.
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The ultimatum package included several items that had previously received a wide public response.
The opposition insists that President Aslan Bzhaniya revoke two Russian-Abkhaz agreements on the transfer of the Pitsunda estate to Russia, and on the mutual recognition and enforcement of court and arbitration decisions in economic cases.
In addition, the opposition demands a return to a socially oriented electricity tariff and the bill “On the regulation of the legal status of apart-hotels and apartments” be abandoned.
“If President Aslan Bzhaniya does not fulfill all the demands of public organizations within two weeks and does not dismiss the anti-social cabinet of ministers, political parties and public organizations will announce the date of protest in Sukhum,” the opposition said in a statement.
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Commentary
Inal Khashig, editor of JAMnews in Abkhazia / editor-in-chief of the Chegemskaya Pravda newspaper
In the political life of Abkhazia everything is as usual. The opposition demands almost impossible things from Aslan Bzhaniya.
To an outside observer, it may seem that the most important thing in this package is the resignation of the government.
In fact, this is a very controversial issue.
The withdrawal of two Russian-Abkhazian agreements for Aslan Bzhaniya is a much more painful topic. He is well aware of what this means: to negotiate with the Kremlin, and then reverse.
This would not even be bad manners, but the end of his political career. Moscow is unlikely to forgive such an insult. There won’t be any big announcements but an abrupt end to financial assistance for Abkhazia or, for example, tightening access on the Russian-Abkhazian border so much that it would be easier for a Russian tourist to get a Schengen visa than to get to Abkhazian beaches.
And then Bzhaniya doesn’t even need opposition – his own people will carry him out of the presidential palace.
There are other painful items in the package.
One of them is related to the electricity tariff. Now, due to a sharp increase in its cost, the government intends to at least partially solve the energy crisis.
And one more very important point concerns a very profitable topic — permission for foreigners to purchase apartments in Abkhazia.
Western sanctions imposed on Russia and, in fact, on its citizens, have dramatically increased the attractiveness of Abkhazia. The opportunity to buy real estate on the Cote d’Azur, a villa in Spain, or at least an apartment in Bulgaria has now turned into a pipe dream for a wealthy Russian.
The Abkhazian authorities are clearly aware of the current conjuncture with the foreign real estate market accessible to Russians. The demand is huge. There is big money at stake. Which is very important, given the degree of corruption in the Abkhaz government system. The main beneficiary of the de facto removal of the taboo on the acquisition of real estate by foreigners in Abkhazia will be the local bureaucracy. And they will do everything to push through this law.
As for the government, it can be dismissed and then reappointed again for the sake of appearance, replacing a couple of weak links. According to existing legislation, all this is within the exclusive competence of the president.
But even to such a “technical” concession, the President, I am sure, will not agree. Abkhazian presidents, according to the established tradition of their dealings with the opposition, do not make concessions. The complex about seeming weak dominated each of them.
And the opposition itself, in general, does not expect the president to fulfill even one point from the ultimatums presented.
The real meaning of the message is: “Aslan Bzhaniya, get ready. Now it’s our turn to storm the presidential palace.”
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