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The News in Brief

Friday, May 10
Workshop and discussion on the role of the 'Women, Peace and Security' agenda for Georgia’s conflicts took place in Tbilisi

On May 5 - 9, a group of Ukrainian, German and Georgian young researchers and students gathered in Tbilisi for a workshop to discuss the role of women in peace and security in Georgia and Ukraine, aiming to answer the following questions: What is the status of women’s rights and women’s participation in politics and society in Ukraine and Georgia? How do governmental and civil society actors, NGOs and mediators address issues of women, peace, and security? Which challenges do internally displaced women face? How does the situation differ among Ukraine and Georgia and what can be learned from the respective other? What could Germany and the EU do to strengthen the women, peace and security perspective on the Ukrainian and Georgian conflicts?

The project was concluded with a public discussion at the Betsy Hotel in Tbilisi on the issues of women in conflicts, their role in building peace and strengthening security.

The workshop and the discussion were organized by three NGOs from the three countries – IDP Women Association 'Consent' (Georgia), Ideas for Change (Ukraine) and Polis180 (Germany).

The project was funded and supported by the Federal Foreign Office, the foreign ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany.



Bakhtadze: Kobulia’s views were different from ours

As the Prime Minister said during his interview, his and Giorgi Kobulia’s views were different, and that was the main reason why they could not work together.

“Kobulia is a professional, and he did some very impressive work. But as I have already said, our views were drastically different,” PM noted.

As he said, he had a conversation about this matter with Kobulia, and they both agreed that they could not work as a team. "Our goal is very ambitious, and Georgians are waiting for speedy development," said Bakhtadze about future plans.

Ex-Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development left his job on April 19, 2019. Giorgi Kobulia was in the office for only 10 months.



Monuments damaged in the garden of Opera and Ballet Theatre

The fountain at the garden of Opera and Ballet Theatre of Tbilisi was vandalized. According to the statement published by the Tbilisi City Hall, the ballerina sculptures were damaged.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs launched an investigation under Article 187 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which implies damage or destruction of the monuments.

The 'EcoService' group decided to remove the sculptures from the site for future rehabilitation, as they said, after the statues are restored, they will be returned to the garden.

"We encourage people to take care of the heritage of Tbilisi and the infrastructure of the capital," reads the statement of Tbilisi City Hall.
(By Nika Gamtsemlidze)