Shirak Torosyan, MP and President of the Javakhk Patriotic Union, one of the organizers of the protest, argued that Georgia tries to assimilate the Armenians in Geogria and said "Although emigration is growing, Armenians of Javakhk will not leave and will not assimilate, and the Georgian authorities will once understand this."
Some Armenian politicians demand self-government and self-determination for Armenian minority of Georgia. Armenian separatism is not a problem of Georgia but a regional phenomena. Armenia occupied almost 17 percent of Azerbaijani territories and attacked the Nahcivan territories. Armenia who does not recognize Turkey's national borders and calls eastern Turkey as "Western Armenia', supports the anti-Georgian activities in Javakheti and Abkhaz regions of Georgia.
Javakheti is Georgia's southernmost region and shares a border with Armenia. Majority of the region have language or cultural ties to the neighboring state. Despite being born in Georgia, few of these people, many of them descendants of Armenian families moved to Georgia in the early Soviet period, feel any allegiance to Georgia at all. Javakheti has enjoyed a de facto autonomy under Russian patronage and wants to continue its special position before Tbilisi while the Georgians are more cautious after the August War with the Russians which divided the country into 3 different states.
Javakheti has a better Armenia than it does with Tbilisi. The central government can provide little financial assistance to Javakheti due to the economic difficulties. Armenian political groups on both sides of the border continuously push the Georgian Government to give the Armenian language equal official status to the Georgian tongue in the Javakheti region. Armenian is already spoken in the schools. Javakh Armenians' demands go beyond language rights. In practice the Javakh Armenians aim a separate Armenian state or annexation to Armenia.
Samtskhe-Javakheti (formerly Meskheti ) is a strategically important region in southern Georgia, with Akhaltsikhe as its capital. It is bordered by Georgian provinces to the north and east and Armenia and Turkey to the south. Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline and South Caucasus natural gas pipeline passes through this region. If Georgia loses this region, it could be an end of united and strong Georgia. Therefore Russia has continued to kindle nationalist moods among Armenians of Samtskhe-Javakheti region in order to shatter and weaken Georgia as much as possible. Armenia is the only ally of Russia in the Caucasus.
By Nuri Yarensoy, JTW
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