Poison and Covid-19 in Abkhazia
Photograph of Abkhaz President-Elect Aslan Bzhania. Photo courtesy of the Information Telegraph Agency of Russia.
Note on terminology and sovereignty: the Republic of Abkhazia is a non-recognised state, within the nation of Georgia. Historically, the government of Abkhazia has been seen as a puppet state of the Russian Federation, founded in the years after the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. This piece is not meant to lend support the international recoginition of the Abkhaz state, government, or election process.
On 22 March, the self-declared nation of Abkhazia held a presidential election. The election was mired in speculation and controversy about covert poisonings, election fraud, Russian influence, and the Covid-19 outbreak.
The opposition leader, Aslan Bzhania, won the presidential contest with 58.92 per cent of the vote. His main rival, 'Economics Minister' Adgur Ardzinba came in second, garnering 36.93 per cent, with fringe candidate Leonid Dzapshba coming in a distant third.
The 2020 election came after the controversial 2019 presidential election, that was subsequently nullified by the Abkhaz High Court. Former Abkhaz President Raul Khajimba was forced to resign last year, after protestors occupied government offices, following allegations that he violated election rules the previous year, as reported by the Boston Globe.
In the September 2019 election, Mr Khajimba was declared the winner, even though he won less than 49 per cent of the vote. While the protests that followed the election are seen to be the cause for Mr Khajimba's resignation, he did not announce that he would leave his position until Russian President Vladimir's Putin's aid, Vladislav Surkov, arrived the capital to 'mediate' the crisis.
Mr Bzhania's campaign was temporarily suspended in 2019 after he was admitted to a Russian hospital with, what was suspected at the time to be, a poisoning attempt by Mr Khajimba (both men are the former head of the Abkhaz Security Service). However, hospital staff later reported the mysterious illness to be pneumonia, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Mr Bzhania re-launched his campaign this year for the new election. The central component to his campaign, and most national campaigns, was to do with Abkhaz relations with the Russian Federation and the state of Georgia. After the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, ethnic Georgians were forced out of the Abkhaz territories, and thus Abkhaz nationalism is a core component to nearly all national presidential campaigns and party manifestos.
Mr Bzhania, while stressing the importance of close relations to the Russian government, mainly due to their large military and political presence in the self-declared nation, he seemed more willing to negotiate a peaceful settlement with the Georgian government. This position aligned with the growing opinions of many younger Abkhazs who wish to see an end to the conflict.
Mr Ardzinba, who came in second, prioritised the importance of friendly relations with the Russian Federation and seemed to rule out coordination with Georgia, according to the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a Philadelphia-based think tank.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry condemned the election, saying that they 'fully contradict the fundamental norms and principles of international law'.
Additionally, the European Union, of which Georgia is an aspiring member, also disregarded the election, saying 'the European Union does not recognise the constitutional and legal framework in which they took place'.
Abkhazia is only recognised by a handful of nations, besides the Kremlin, and struggles to gain support and aid without a recognised government, and the Georgian government has little control over the region due to Russian military presence and lack of local and ethnic support.
Many observers expected for the poll to be cancelled or delayed due to the lack of resources to handle the Covid-19 pandemic and the fear of the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. However, upon consultation with a delegation from the World Health Organisation, border restrictions were tightened, concerns and other public events were cancelled, and the government accepted pledges of aid.
Despite warnings by international health officials, large campaign gatherings and events, in tightly packed venues, popped up all over the nation. As of the publication of this article, there have been no reported cases of Covid-19 in Abkhazia; however, officials have signalled that it is just a matter of time before it spreads to the region.
The notion of Abkhazia and its people is a very controversial subject on its own, and this election was largely overshadowed by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. However, Abkhazia could see new policies of cooperation in the coming years, with the election of the new government.
Sources:
'Georgia’s breakaway republic of Abkhazia votes for president'. The Boston Globe, Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC, 22 March 2020,
Scollon, Michael. 'Breakaway Abkhazia Holds Election Under Cloud Of Controversy, Coronavirus'. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, U.S. Agency for Global Media, 20 March 2020,
https://www.rferl.org/a/georgia-abkhazia-election-controversy-coronavirus-/30500228.html
Scollon, Michael. 'Abkhazia Election Back On Track After Race Tainted By 'Poisoning''. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, U.S. Agency for Global Media, 10 March 2020,
Hess, Maximilian and Otarashvili, Maia. 'Poisonings, Political Crisis, and Missed Opportunities in Abkhazia'. FPRI, Foreign Policy Research Insitute, 11 March 2020,
https://www.fpri.org/article/2020/03/poisonings-political-crises-missed-opportunities-abkhazia/
'Georgia: Statement by the Spokesperson on the so-called presidential elections in the Georgian breakaway region of Abkhazia'. EEAS, European External Action Service, 23 March 2020,