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Revision as of 23:05, 17 December 2005 by Search4Lancer (talk | contribs) (→Ancient and medieval Adjaria)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The article refers to the history of Georgia’s autonomous province of Adjaria.
Ancient and medieval Adjaria
Archeologists say the territory has been inhabited since the Neolithic Age. Occupied by an ancient Georgian tribe of Moskhs from ancient times, the territory of Adjaria was a province of Colchis in the 7th-3rd cent. BC. Part of the area formed a county (saeristavo) within the Kingdom of Iberia in the late 4th century BC. Colonized by Greek merchants in the 5th and 4th cent. B.C., the coastal Adjaria later came under Roman rule. Bathus (Bathys) (the present day Batumi) and Apsaros (Apsaruntos) (modern Gonio) were the key cities and fortresses at that time. Archeological excavations have revealed ruins of a rich ancient town at Pichvnari near the present day town of Kobuleti. In the 2nd century AD, Bathus was an important military base for Roman legions. Apsaros was famous for its theatre.
The early Christian era in Adjaria was linked with names of Saint Andrew, Saint Simon the Canaanite and Matata. Saint Matthew is said to be buried in the Gonio fortress near Batumi.
In the 2nd Century AD, Adjara was incorporated in the (Egrisi|kingdom of Lazica). The province’s key fortress of Petra (Tsikhisdziri) served as a battlefield during the Lazic War between the Byzantines and Persians in 542-562.
In the 8th century, the region was divided between two Georgian states, the so-called Kingdom of Georgians and the Abkhaz Kingdom.
In the 11th century, Adjara became a part of the unified Georgian Kingdom and was governed by rulers of Samtskhe-Saatabago. The region was ravaged by Seljuks in the 11th century and by Mongols in the 13th century. After the disintegration of Georgian monarchy and subsequent internal wars, Adjaria was passed from hands to hands until it became a part of the Principality of Guria in 1535. The Genoese established one of their Black Sea trading “factories” at the fortified town of Gonio at that time.
Adjara under the Ottoman rule
In 1547, the Ottomans raided the province and captured Batumi. Liberated by Prince Rostom Gurieli of Guria in 1564, the region fell under the Turkish rule again in 1582. In 1609, Prince Mamia Gurieli temporarily relieved Batumi. However, Guria lost the province to the Ottomans in 1614. The area was divided into two sandjaks and submitted to the Pasha of Childir (Akhaltsikhe). Part of Adjarians fled to other Georgian regions. Those who remained were forcibly converted to Islam. Nevertheless, until 1770s, most Adjar peasants were Christian. The Ottoman rule became firmer in the late 18th century and the process of Islamicization accelerated especially after the 1820s. During the Crimean War of 1853-1856 and Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, thousands of Adjarians were recruited in the Ottoman army.
Adjara under the Russian rule
The Ottomans ceded Adjara (called Adjaristan under the Turkish rule) to the Russian Empire on March 3 1878. Under the Russian oppression of Islam, thousands of Muslims fled the region in search of refuge in Turkey in an immigration process called Muhajiroba. Financed by the Ottomans, a terrorist organization known as The Avengers attempted to kill Russian officers and officials, along with Adjarians who collaborated with the imperial presence. Nevertheless, many Adjarians were loyal to Russia as they found the best opportunity to be reunited with other Georgians.
The Berlin Congress of 1878 declared the regional capital of Batum a porto franco or free port. The city became an important seaport and industrial city towards the end of 1880s. At the turn of the 20th century, Batumi was linked to the oil fields of Baku by one of the earliest pipelines and a railway, and it became one of the most important ports in the world. On June 22, 1892 the “Markus”, a huge tanker ship departed Batumi for Bangkok, Thailand, becoming the first oil tanker to transit the Suez Canal.
The region (called Batum Oblast under the Russian rule) witnessed numerous strikes and bloody crackdowns during the Russian Revolution of 1905-1907.
During World War I, Adjarian muhajirs (emigrants to Turkey) formed a division within the Turkish army. Adjara was temporarily occupied by the Ottoman army on 14 April 1918.
British Occupation
On December 15, 1918 the British expeditionary forces landed at Batumi to replace the Turkish troops. The Council for Batum Region was created to govern Adjara from 21 December 1918 to 28 April 1919. On 13 September 1919, the Committee for Liberation of Muslims of Georgia founded a Mejlis (parliament) of Adjaria and advocated the region’s incorporation into the Democratic Republic of Georgia while another faction of Seday Mileth (in Turkish: voice of nation) propagated pro-Turkish ideas.
Adjara in Democratic Republic of Georgia
The British administration ceded the region to Georgia on 20 July 1920. Bolsheviks and Russian agents organized a series of sabotages and terrorist acts.
During the Soviet invasion of Georgia, Turkish forces occupied Batumi on March 11, 1921 and held the city until they were expelled by the Georgian troops under General Giorgi Mazniashvili on March 18, 1921. The Soviet rule in Batumi was declared the next day. Turkey recognized the region as a part of Georgian SSR by the Soviet-Turkish Treaty of Kars of 16 March 1921.
Adjaria under Soviet rule
The Soviet government declared the Adzharian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Adzharian ASSR) on 16 July 1921. Turkey ceded the region to Bolsheviks on the condition that it would be granted autonomy, for the sake of the Muslims among Adjaria's mixed population. It is thought also that Moscow wanted to avoid giving Georgia complete control of the important Black Sea port of Batumi and to bolster Communist leanings among the ethnic Georgian Muslims living in Turkey. Under Joseph Stalin, Islam, like Christianity, was repressed.
Adjaria under Aslan Abashidze
Following Georgia’s first democratic parliamentary and presidential elections, President Zviad Gamsakhurdia appointed Aslan Abashidze as the head of the Adjara’s Supreme Council on March 15 1991 hoping that the latter would assist in canceling the autonomous status of the region. However, when Gamsakhurdia proposed to abolish Ajarian autonomy, Abashidze called Ajarians, especially the Muslims of the region, to rise in protest. Tensions with central Georgian authorities ensued. On 22 April 1991, pro-Abashidze protesters stormed administrative buildings in the central Batumi demanding the immediate resignation of several officials. The protests were effectively used by Abashidze to establish his own powerbase in the region. Gamsakhurdia facing serious internal problems already in Tbilisi preferred not to interfere in the Ajarian events. In turmoil, Nodar Imnadze, Abashidze’s deputy chairman of the Supreme Soviet and the highest placed supporter of Gamsakhurdia in Ajaria, was killed in highly controversial circumstances. In Batumi’s version, Imnadze was shot by guards while attempting to burst in Abashidze’s office with a gun in his hands. The Tbilisi-controlled media simply printed unspecified obituaries. However, many claims have been made that Imnadze was killed by Abashidze himself during the argument at office.
Under Abashidze’s tight control of the autonomy, Adjaria enjoyed relative political stability and economic prosperity during the Georgian Civil War. However, the majority of the Adjarians remained poor despite numerous economical projects and foreign investments. On 24 October 1997, Adjaria became a full member of the Assembly of European Regions (AER).
The relations between the central and regional authorities were strained. Adjarian leadership often refused to pay taxes to the central budget. Abashidze took control over the customs, Batumi seaport and other strategic objects. He created his own semi-official armed units and had full control over the Batumi-based 25th Brigade of Georgia’s Defense Ministry.
The central government claimed Batumi-based Russian military unit was a powerbase for the Adjarian strongman and criticized Abashidze for his pro-Russian orientation.
Georgia's ex-president Eduard Shevardnadze visited the region several times during his rule in 1992-2003 to attempt reconciliation with Abashidze. They reached a kind of compromise which allowed Abashidze to stay in power.The latter's party, the Union of Democratic Revival of Georgia, cooperated with Shevardnadze's ruling Union of Citizens of Georgia party in the 1995 parliamentary elections, but broke with Shevardnadze after the elections.
Abashidze's Revival Party had thirty members in the Georgian parliament, and was seen as a moderate opposition to the central government in Tbilisi. After the rigged elections of 2003 and the ensuing "Rose Revolution" in Georgia, Abashidze described the November 2003 ouster of Shevardnadze as "a violent coup d'etat”.
Adjaria crisis
Main article: Adjaria Crisis
Immediately after Shevardnadze’s fall, Aslan Abashidze declared the state of emergency in the region on November 23, 2003. Nevertheless, Adjaria took part in the Georgian presidential elections of January 4 won by Mikheil Saakashvili. Mr Saakashvili ordered the Ajarian leader to comply with the Georgian constitution and start disarming. In May 2004, Abashidze claimed that Georgian forces were preparing to invade. His forces blew up bridges connecting the region with the rest of Georgia. The state of emergency was followed by dispersion of local oppositional demonstrations as of May 4. This proved a catalyst for even larger demonstrations later on the same day. Tens of thousands from all Adjara headed for Batumi to demand Abashidze’s resignation. On May 6, Abashidze's position became untenable when local protesters took control over the central Batumi and Georgian Special Forces entered the region and started to disarm pro-Abashidze groups. After the overnight talks with the Russian official Igor Ivanov Mr. Abashidze stepped down and left for Moscow.
Post-Abashidze era
On May 7, 2004 direct presidential rule was imposed in Adjaria and 20-member Interim Council was set up to run the Autonomous Republic before the fresh local elections could be held in the region. Levan Varshalomidze was appointed as the Chairman of the Interim Council.
Regional parliamentary elections were held on June 20. Victorious Adjara, party backed by President Saakashvili won 28 seats out of 30 in the local legislative body. Remaining two seats were occupied by Saakashvili's former allies, the Republican Party members. There were allegations of vote-rigging from the Republicans, after they won less than 15 per cent of the vote. On July 20, Adjarian Supreme Council approved Levan Varshalomidze as the Chairman of the Autonomous Republic’s Government.
The regional policy of central and local governments focuses on attracting foreign investments in the region. A large scale campaign of privatization has been launched for this purpose.
Georgian opposition and some European observers criticize the current status of Adjaria and say that the Georgian central government has brought the status of autonomy down to a nominal. Some claims have been made about human right violations, particularly in mass media.
Russian military presence is another challenge in the region. In violation of the 1999 Istanbul OSCE summit’s promise to withdraw, Russia maintain a military base in Batumi – a source of great tension with Georgia.