Armed Conflicts, Fled People

The inauguration of Gamsakhurdia marked a confrontational stance on minority issues, epitomized by the famous slogan “Georgia for Georgians.” While Ghia Nodia, a prominent Georgian political scientist, admits to never hearing this slogan directly from Gamsakhurdia himself or in his rallies, he acknowledges its resonance as an authentic expression of the president’s stance (1998: 27). Five months before Georgia declared independence, the autonomy of the South Ossetia region was abolished on December 11, 1990. The next day, Georgian troops imposed a state of emergency in several South Ossetian districts, including the capital, Tskhinvali. This move set the stage for the upcoming conflict, and on January 5–6, 1991, Georgian forces launched a significant offensive into Tskhinvali, resulting in widespread atrocities and effectively igniting the war. In response to these developments, on January 7, 1991, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev issued a decree denouncing both South Ossetia’s bid for independence and the Georgian parliament’s decision to revoke South Ossetian autonomy. He also called for Georgian military withdrawal, a call that the Georgian parliament ignored. The confrontation saw the involvement of the Georgian National Guard, commanded by Tengiz Kitovani, a graduate in fine arts, along with various Georgian paramilitary factions such as the “White Eagles,” “White George,” “White Falcons,” “Black Panthers,” the “Kutaisi National Guard,” and the “Merab Kostava Society.” Cvetkovski (1999) notes that these paramilitary units displayed various ideologies, with some resembling mafia organizations lacking any clear ideological direction. On the Ossetian side, the resistance was formed by militias of Soviet Army veterans and local inhabitants, including athletes and smugglers (Toal and O’Loughlin 2013: 141).