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Democratic Union for Revival

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Democratic Union for Revival
დემოკრატიული აღორძინების კავშირი
ChairpersonAslan Abashidze
FounderAslan Abashidze
Founded1992; 32 years ago (1992)
Dissolved2004 (2004)
HeadquartersBatumi, Adjara
IdeologyRegionalism[1]
Colours  Blue
Party flag
Politics of Georgia
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The Democratic Union for Revival (Georgian: დემოკრატიული აღორძინების კავშირი, romanized: demok'rat'iuli aghordzinebis k'avshiri) was a Political Party in Georgia. The party acquired its current name in 1998, having operated since 1992 under the chairmanship of Aslan Abashidze and the name "Adjaran Union for the Rebirth of Georgia" ("საქართველოს აღორძინების აჭარის კავშირი").

The party ceased to exist following the 2004 Adjarian Revolution.

History

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Background and foundation

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Following the victory of Zviad Gamsakhurdia's Round Table—Free Georgia coalition in the 1990 Georgian Supreme Soviet election, Gamsakhurdia, in order to co-opt a leader from a respected and influential local family in Georgia's Autonomous Republic of Adjara, persuaded the Adjara's Supreme Soviet to appoint Aslan Abashidze as its chairman. Being number 1 of the Round Table's electoral list, Abashidze led the coalition to the victory in the Adjarian Supreme Soviet election in June 1991. However, Abashidze later took advantage of the civil war in the country and turned Adjara into the personal fiefdom, although it remained relatively prosperous enclave in an otherwise rather chaotic country.[2] During the 1991–1992 Georgian coup d'état which ousted Gamsakhurdia from power, Abashidze declared a state of emergency in Adjara, closing its borders and shutting down the Adjarian Supreme Soviet. Abashidze also established his own party, the Union for the Revival of Adjara. In response to pressure from the Adjarian opposition led by Republican Party of Georgia, Georgia's new leader Eduard Shevardnadze met Aslan Abashidze in the Adjarian capital of Batumi and persuaded him to resume the Supreme Soviet sessions in May 1992. However, the opposition failed to oust Abashidze. While Shevardnadze could easily sway certain members of Adjarian Supreme Soviet against Abashidze, he did not do so. Being brought to power through the coup launched by the militia leaders Jaba Ioseliani and Tengiz Kitovani, Shevardnadze saw Abashidze as an useful counterweight against these warlords.[3]

Abashidze further consolidated his power in August 1992 during the War in Abkhazia, when he appointed a seven-member Presidium of the Adjarian Supreme Soviet, made up of his supporters, and began to rule by decree through this body. The Supreme Soviet, on the other hand, ceased functioning. Abashidze increasingly restricted opposition, but he managed to prevent various paramilitary groups from entering Adjara's territory, and preserved peace through authoritarianism, which brought him considerable popularity.[3]

After the end of Georgia's civil war, Abashidze reached agreement with the Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze to stay in power.[2] Shevardnadze, who had yet to cement his power in Georgia, ignored Abashidze's authoritarian rule and even appreciated that it brought stability to the region.[3] The central government in Tbilisi had very little say in what went on in Adjara. Abashidze instituted the border control with the rest of Georgia and created armed paramilitaries.[4] Elections in Adjara were not free and fair and Abashidze controlled the media.[5] The Adjarian government became fully dominated by the Abashidze's family clan. Abashidze monopolized control over the port of Batumi and the Sarpi checkpoint, a main passage at the Georgia–Turkey border. He henceforth refused to transfer the tax revenues to the state budget of Georgia. Abashidze used customs revenue for his personal enrichment.[6][7] This, along with contraband of cigarettes and allegedly also weapons and narcotics, as well as oil refinery in Batumi, brought Abashidze's regime a considerable power and resources.[8]

Despite making Adjara de facto independent from Georgia, Abashidze never asserted separatist ambitions and even presented himself as the guardian of Georgian unity. Adjara is an only autonomous region in the Southern Caucasus which has not been involved in the secessionist conflict with the central government since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. While Adjarians, a subgroup of ethnic Georgians, adopted Islam during the centuries of Ottoman imperial rule over Adjara, which differentiated them from the rest of Georgian subgroups who adhered to Orthodox Christianity, Adjarians at the same time retained many cultural similarities with Christian Georgians and never developed a separate "Adjarian identity", remaining accepted within the definition of Georgian nation. This provided insufficient base for a strong nationalist or excessively regionalist movement in Adjara. Moreover, a considerable power and resources allowed Abashidze to politically and financially establish a national political role throughout whole Georgia, and the Union for the Revival of Adjara took part in the nationwide Georgian elections.[1]

Entrance into nationwide politics

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Even though Shevardnadze often complained about Abashidze's aggressive autonomous strategy, they had good relationships and supported each other when they needed public support.[9][10] Following the 1995 Georgian parliamentary election, Abashidze's Union of Democratic Revival formed the parliamentary majority with the Shevardnadze's Union of Citizens of Georgia in the Georgian Parliament. The Revival members became chairs of two parliamentary committees. In September 1996, the Revival and UCG formed a joint electoral bloc for the 1996 Adjarian Supreme Council elections and won 76 seats out of 80 available.[11]

The relations deteriorated in the summer of 1997, initially over the new law on self-government and the appointment of heads of the municipalities in Adjara. Ultimately, the draft law was amended so that the President Shevardnadze would appoint all heads of the municipalities in Georgia except those of Adjara, where Abashidze would appoint his candidates in consultation with the President. Later, in July 1997, several MPs in Georgian parliament defected from the Revival to the new "Mamuli" faction and established close ties with the CUG, which invoked suspicions in Abashidze. He especially mistrusted the CUG's 'reformist faction'. After Eduard Surmanidze, a deputy chairman of parliament from the Revival party defected to the 'reformist wing', Abashidze called for his resignation but was resisted by the UCG. Ultimately, after an exchange of some hostile statements between the parties, the Revival began to boycott the Georgian parliament in April 1998.[11] At this time, Abashidze began to build an opposition coalition around him. In June 1998, a three-day congress of the Revival party with the participation of some opposition parties was held in Batumi, where Abashidze called for broader autonomy for Adjara, including independent control of borders, and spoke against the "autocratic" Georgian government.[12] Using his financial resources, Abashidze attracted various actors disillusioned with Shevardnadze and the CUG into his camp, including the Socialist Party, Georgian Labour Party, the Popular Party, and the Union of Georgian Traditionalists. He also attracted some prominent individuals, such as former head of the Georgian National Bank Nodar Javakhishvili, former deputy Prosecutor Vakhtang Gvaramia, legal expert Valeri Gelbakhiani, the journalist Giorgi Targamadze and the theatre director Giga Lortkipanidze. For the 1999 Georgian parliamentary election, the Revival united with the Union of Georgian traditionalists, the Socialist Party, and some Zviadists to form a powerful anti-UCG bloc and garnered 25% of the votes.[13]

In 2000, Abashidze positioned himself to run for the Georgian presidency. However, following meetings with Georgian parliamentary speaker Zurab Zhvania and President Eduard Shevardnadze in Batumi on 5 and 6 April, Abashidze made a last-minute decision to withdraw his candidacy. Observers claimed that the decision was made in return for some concessions from the central Georgian government. Shortly after the election the Georgian parliament passed the constitutional amendments, dividing the power between the Adjarian Autonomous Republic and the central Georgian government in the Georgian constitution.[14] In 2001, Abashidze consolidated his power by establishing the post of a directly elected Head of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara with powers to control any movement of military on Adjara's territory, and was elected on this position in November 2001 while being the only candidate.[15]

Rose Revolution

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In the 2003 Georgian parliamentary election, the Revival came second with 19% of votes, while the UCG-led "For a New Georgia" coalition received 21%. The United National Movement and Burjanadze-Democrats, led by formers leaders of the UCG's "reformist faction" who left the party starting from 2001, received 18% and 9% of the votes respectively. The results were widely deemed as rigged, with the parallel vote tabulation showing the UNM as a clear leader. The UNM and Burjanadze-Democrats launched mass protests, which led to the Rose Revolution toppling Shevardnadze from power.[16] Aslan Abashidze, being in strong opposition to the Rose Revolution, declared a state of emergency in Adjara immediately after Eduard Shevardnadze's ousting on 23 November 2003.[18] Abashidze was not opposed to Shevardnadze in principle and was willing to work with him in the parliament, but was categorically against the 'reformist group' within the CUG, whose accession to power he deemed as highly detrimental to the interests of the Adjaran elite.[19]

Soon after his victory in the snap presidential election in January 2004, the leader of UNM Mikheil Saakashvili took aim at Abashidze with strong anticorruption reforms.[20][21] In the wake of Abashidze's visit to Moscow, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on January 20 backing Abashidze's policy and condemning his opposition as "extremist forces".[22] During the Georgian snap parliamentary elections in March 2004, the Revival's vote share dropped to 6.13% and it failed to cross the electoral threshold to receive any seats in the Georgian parliament. In Adjara, the Revival managed to defeat the UNM, receiving 52.5% of Adjarian votes as opposed to 40.1% of UNM. However, this was a sharp drop from 95% of the vote the Revival received in November 2003. Although the observers noted a "slight progress" in the Adjara's election conduct in March 2004 in comparasion to November 2003, the election was still widely criticized as rigged. This revitalized Adjarian opposition, which responded by increasing calls for Abashidze to resign.[23]

In spring 2004, a major crisis in Adjara erupted as the central government sought to reimpose its authority on the region. It led to several encounters between Abashidze's paramilitaries and the Georgian army.[24] However, Saakashvili's ultimata and mass protests in Batumi against Abashidze's autocratic rule forced the Adjaran leader to resign in May 2004. Facing charges of embezzlement and murder, Abashidze destroyed the bridges between Adjara and the rest of Georgia to delay the advance of Georgian troops in Batumi and then fled to Moscow.[24]

Political platform

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The party represented regional interests and demanded greater autonomy of the bodies of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara from the central government. Its leader Aslan Abashidze pushed for concentration of power and his independent management of Adjara's economy, lobbying for Adjara to become a "free economic zone".[25]

Abashidze's foreign policy was Russian-oriented, with him establishing close ties with Russian Defence Minister Pavel Grachev and Moscow's mayor Yuri Luzhkov.[26] Abashidze relied on the Russian garrison in Adjara to defy the central Georgian government.</ref name="world">

According to the party, the economic growth along with the market economy should be encouraged by the state bodies through social guarantees.[citation needed]

Elections

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Parliamentary

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Election Leader Votes % Seats +/– Position Government Coalition
1995 Aslan Abashidze 145,626 7.27
31 / 235
 New 3rd Opposition Independent
1999 Aslan Abashidze 537,297 26.82
58 / 235
 Increase 27 Increase 2nd Opposition Revival Bloc
2003 Aslan Abashidze 359,769 19.54
39 / 225
 Decrease 19 Steady 2nd Opposition Independent
2004 Aslan Abashidze 57,829 3.95
0 / 150
 Decrease 39 Decrease 5th Extra-parliamentary Independent


References

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  1. ^ a b Cornell, Svante (January 2002). "Autonomy as a source of conflict: Caucasian conflicts and theoretical perspective" (PDF). World Politics. 54 (2). The Johns Hopkins University Press: 274–275.
  2. ^ a b "Aslan Abashidze". BBC. 4 May 2004. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. pp. 70–71. ISBN 9780754645030.
  4. ^ "Aslan Abashidze, a Man of Feudal Loyalty and Pride". 21 December 2002.
  5. ^ George, Julie A. (2009). The Politics of Ethnic Separatism in Russia and Georgia. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780230102323. ISBN 978-0-230-61359-1. OCLC 320435107.p. 129
  6. ^ George 2009, p. 137.
  7. ^ Nodia, Ghia (2006). The Political Landscape of Georgia (PDF). Eburon Academic Publishers. p. 16.
  8. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. p. 115. ISBN 9780754645030.
  9. ^ George 2009, p. 129.
  10. ^ George 2009, p. 141.
  11. ^ a b Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. p. 124. ISBN 9780754645030.
  12. ^ "Resonansi", No. 169, June 24, cf. "Annotated Daily Headlines Of The Georgian Press. Compiled by the Caucasian Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development (CIPDD)", June 24, 1998
  13. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. pp. 116, 124. ISBN 9780754645030.
  14. ^ Fuller, Liz (21 April 2000). "Tbilisi Moves To Define Relations With Autonomies". Radio Freedom.
  15. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. p. 116. ISBN 9780754645030.
  16. ^ Nodia, Ghia (2006). The Political Landscape of Georgia (PDF). Eburon Academic Publishers. p. 19-20.
  17. ^ Saakashvili's Ajara Success: Repeatable Elsewhere in Georgia? (Report). International Crisis Group. 2004-08-18. ICG Europe Briefing 34. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
  18. ^ International Crisis Group, 2004, page 6.[17]
  19. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. p. 125. ISBN 9780754645030.
  20. ^ George 2009, pp. 172–173.
  21. ^ "Georgia Has a New President". Civil Georgia. 2004-01-25. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
  22. ^ "Moscow Backs Abashidze, Slams "Extremist" Forces in Adjara". Civil Georgia. 2004-01-21. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
  23. ^ "Abashidze's Party Fails to Secure Parliamentary Seats". Civil Georgia. 2004-03-31. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
  24. ^ a b George 2009, p. 175.
  25. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 9780754645030.
  26. ^ Wheatley, Jonathan (2005). Georgia from National Awakening to Rose Revolution. Ashgate Publishing. p. 115. ISBN 9780754645030.
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