APPEAL OF THE SUPREME COUNCIL OF THE REPUBLIC OF ABKHAZIA to the Supreme Council of the Russian Federation

For eight months Abkhazia has been tortured by the war unleashed by the bloody regime of Shevardnadze. Here one can witness the purposeful destruction of people, buildings, cultural and living environment. The events are turning into comprehensive regional disaster. Every 100^th of Abkhazia is already killed, every 50^th is wounded. Hundreds of Russians, Armenians, Greeks, Ukrainians, Jews and representatives of other ethnic origins are either killed or injured; 150 thousand people are expelled from their houses and robbed and they have become refugees mostly in Russia. In front of eyes of the world community Shevardnadze’s gangs lead the total ethnic cleansing on the territory of Abkhazia perpetrating genocide against the multi-ethnic people. They push to death thousands of Georgian men and the mercenaries of other nationalities, using and leaving vulnerable the local Georgian population.

Shevardnadze, realizing that protracted war, economic downfall and decreased popularity in the West of Georgia’s methods of political struggle could collapse the fascist regime in Tbilisi, declared the general mobilization and increased the forces in the devastated Sukhumi. He planned to attack the districts of Abkhazia that remained free, in order to devastate them. There is a plan of comprehensive destruction of the cities of Tkuarchal, Novi Afon, Gudauta, Pitsunda, and Gagra. At the same time Shevardnadze resorts to various diplomatic tricks aimed at involving in Abkhaz war different forces of Russia, CIS and foreign countries in his own favor. The issue of railway and other “causes” of penetration of Georgian troops into Abkhazia have been abandoned. Currently Shevardnadze is declaring to the entire world that in Abkhazia Georgia is fighting against Russia. Georgian side is carrying out provocative shooting against Russian military and civil objects in Abkhazia, killing Russian citizens – militaries and peaceful residents. At the same time Shevardnadze tries to meet Yeltsin and other Russian politicians (using his traditional methods – cajolery, fraud, threats etc.) and involve them in the slaughtering confrontation in Abkhazia.

On 25 September and 25 December of 1992 the Supreme Council of the Russian Federation adopted important decisions on stabilization of the situation in the North Caucasus and in Abkhazia. However these decisions failed to be realized and the peace, so necessary for the region, was not restored, moreover, it is even more deteriorated. Against this background the Supreme Council of the Republic of Abkhazia

- acknowledging that continuation of the war with the regime of Shevardnadze will bring to the total annihilation of the Abkhaz and other peoples of multinational Abkhazia;

- reminding that the indigenous population of the region – Abkhazs – belongs to the community of the North Caucasus peoples with its language. culture and mentality, and the majority of other citizens (Russians, Ukrainians, Armenians, Greeks, Ossetians, Tatars and others) also are economically and culturally oriented to the North Caucasus and Russia;

- stating that due to the abolishment of the USSR and the Georgian SSR, and recognition by the Georgian Government null and void all Constitutions and legal acts of the soviet period, the Republic of Abkhazia de jure fell outside of political borders of Georgia, and in the war environment - also de facto;

- noting that Shevardnadze’s “criminal-chauvinistic” government, which failed to organize democratic (in European understanding) state securing the equal rights to its citizens and peoples, today against them unleashed the war– generating destruction and death everywhere;

- having 1810 Manifesto of Alexander I on free-will entrance of Abkhaz Principality within Russian Empire, which was not abrogate by anyone and which was supported by the people, also the experience of the independent state-building in 1921-1931 and the results of 1991 Referendum, when the people of Abkhazia expressed its will on maintaining the common political, economic and cultural space with the North Caucasus and with entire Russia;

- guided by the single wish – to stop the war, protect the people of Abkhazia and its environment, wonderful historical and natural sights, its recreation facilities and gardens from the total destruction;

- taking into account the fact that the war unleashed by the Georgian leadership for annihilation of the Abkhaz People and its statehood established the situation where existence of Abkhazs in the common state together with Georgians is impossible

has to appeal on behalf of long-suffering Abkhaz people to the Supreme Council of the Russian Federation, as to the assignee of the Russian Empire and the USSR, with the strong recommendation on returning the Republic of Abkhazia under Russia’s protectorate on the basis of the relevant international-legal form, securing the peace and safety in the region, surviving the people of Abkhazia and maintaining the economic and cultural space with the Russian Federation, necessary for existence of the people of Abkhazia.

Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Abkhazia V. Ardzinba

Gudauta, 23 March 1993

(Conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Documents 1989-2006 (Supplement to “Kavkazskie Sborniki”, edition #1). Collected and commented by M. A. Volkhonski, B. A. Zakharov, N. Y. Silaev. – Moscow, 2008, p. 165-167/in Russian)