Nino Giorgadze's blog

New streams of displaced families are coming from Tblisi, the capital city, every day. Tbilisi's schools are being emptied of families in order to prepare for the upcoming school year. It's a difficult situation that's causing much confusion for everyone.

In fact, since the numbers of displaced people are increasing by the minute, no effective tracking can be done. The numbers are constantly changing at the tent camps and collective centers. As of today, about 9,000 IDPs have been registered, but that number is most likely underestimated.

The Mercy Corps emergency response team divided into two groups today, which sped up the process of delivering humanitarian aid to IDPs in and around Gori. One group continues to deliver beds, blankets and other bedding, while the other group has started to distribute more hygiene kits. These hygiene kits were distributed to 18 kindergartens where displaced families are taking shelter.

There is an extremely poor situation in the bathrooms and hygiene facilities of public buildings where displaced families are staying. There are no specially designated cleaning crews, and the bathrooms are becoming worse by the day.

It is interesting to note that displaced families here are somewhat differentiated by their predicaments: people from the Didi Liakhvi and Patara Liakhvi river valleys, whose villages simply do not exist any more, are adapting more easily to the situation than those residents of Gori whose conflict-ruined apartments are being repaired now.

Read more ▸

This morning, there was a homicide at the Karaleti checkpoint. A Georgian police officer was killed, causing renewed panic among the local population. Families who had begun returning to villages around the area started returning to Gori; the increase in number of IDPs at tent camps and various collective centers was noticeable.

Mercy Corps provided beds, mattresses, blankets and hygiene supplies to these newly displaced — or re-displaced — people. As of today, we have delivered supplies to all of the area's collective centers, which helps IDPs trust us in this uncertain time.

Read more ▸

Photo: Mercy Corps Georgia

The number of displaced people in Gori's tent camp has swelled to more than 1,700 people. Thankfully, the flow of humanitarian supplies and other assistance is keeping pace with new arrivals.

Today Mercy Corps, alongside two of our colleague non-governmental organizations here, delivered hygiene items and sleeping bags to camp residents. We heard many stories as we distributed supplies to displaced people.

Nodar Muradashvili is from the village of Garejvari in Gori district. His house was robbed and attacked by Ossetians during the height of the conflict. The windows of the house were broken and two heads of cattle were stolen. These cattle were the only source of income for the family.

Muradashvili and his wife have lived here in the tent camp for two weeks in a so-called two-room tent. Earlier in the day, another displaced family moved into the tent with them.

Gulnazi Giunashvili is from the village of Karaleti, where Russian troops have set up one of their checkpoints. She feels unsafe to return home right now, despite the opening of the village to residents. Giunashvili and her child are waiting here in the camp for the withdrawal of Russian troops. Just like thousands of camp residents who were — and are — her neighbors, she is unsure when she'll return home.

Meanwhile, everyone here wants to get back to work. During the day, residents go out to search for jobs at construction sites. They seek employment with cleaning services. But there aren't enough jobs to go around.

And so they wait.

Read more ▸

Our team continues to deliver humanitarian assistance to villages within the “buffer zone” controlled by Russian soldiers. Mercy Corps decided to go to the second border post of this unstable territory, the village of Karaleti.

Just yesterday, it was not possible to enter this village — we needed to negotiate with the Russian peacekeepers first. This is why we made an agreement on September 2 and then went to the villages Karaleti, Didi Garejvari and Patara Garejvari on September 3, early in the morning, as fixed by the protocol.

Here in Kareleti, men and elderly people also prevailed. Those who are returning from Gori did not bring their family members, fearing the theft and looting that is continuing here. Just recently, more than six cars have been stolen and various households broken into. Several blocks of apartments, houses and shops have been burned to the ground.

There is only one shop functioning in the village. No groups came here to offer assistance before Mercy Corps. The local government has brought flour only once.

Read more ▸

Photo: Mercy Corps Georgia

Today was the first time since the conflict that Mercy Corps staff entered the Georgian villages beyond the checkpoints of Russian peacekeeping soldiers. We did not have any problems passing through the Russian checkpoints, which are set up at the entrance of the Variani village, Gori district.

These villages were almost empty of population during the fighting and immediate aftermath, but since August 27, people have begun returning to their villages little by little. However, most of those living here now are elderly people and men — those who weren't able to leave in the first place and, now, those returning to see if their homes, farms and livestock are still here.

As soon as we arrived in Variani, we called the population to gather in the village center to distribute humanitarian supplies, mostly hygiene kits that contain household cleaning and health supplies.

According to villagers, we're the first group to arrive here with aid; none of the non-governmental or governmental agencies have visited them, and families are trying to survive using their own supplies. However, the issue of how long these supplies last depends on the unpredictability of the Russian military presence here.

It is widely known that this village is heavily mined. As a result, villagers cannot enter fields or orchards to harvest the summer crops. Tons of fruit and vegetables are spoiling on the trees or in the fields, and it isn't possible to supply goods to the shops.

Families' livelihoods and the local economy are both in grave danger here.

Read more ▸

The catastrophic rise of displaced people is evident: now the population at Gori's tent camp has exceeded 1,400 people, more than double what it was just three days ago. Mercy Corps' emergency team continues to supply them with much-needed food and hygiene items.

Today, an American senator named Bob Corker visited Gori and took some time participating in a Mercy Corps at a public school housing nearly 100 IDPs. Mercy Corps is collaborating with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help Georgia's conflict-affected population. Senator Corker talked to the IDPs and got familiar with the hard situation here. Many of these families have just finished their first week here.

Read more ▸

Photo: Mercy Corps Georgia

The kindergartens and public schools of Gori town continue to fill up with dozens of displaced people from war-torn areas. Today, we provided hygiene supplies and food for six days to those taking refuge at all the kindergartens in the town, as well as the 625 people in the tent camp here.

Many of those at the tent camp know for sure that they have lost everything in their houses and villages; not even a single thing was saved.

Zaza Kareli, a displaced man from Tkviavi village here in Gori district, is now living in Tent #16 with his family. They fled from the first bombardment of their village, even though paramilitary soldiers took their car from them. On their way — walking several miles on foot — they encountered many soldiers, some of whom gestured threateningly. The Kareli family eventually managed to arrive near this place by hitching a ride with the first car that would stop for them.

There is only one bed — used by Kareli's child — in this tent, and a little backpack with some items left from a previous humanitarian aid distribution.

Read more ▸

Photo: Mercy Corps Georgia

After Russian troops left the city of Gori, internally displaced persons (IDPs) from across the conflict zone began streaming into town. At first, they were accommodated at various offices and public buildings around the city, and then reassigned to kindergartens and various other schools on August 24. In addition, a tent camp was set up here to handle the overflow of families returning from the nation's capital, Tbilisi.

Most of the displaced families come from villages located around Tskhinvali, the main city of the occupied region of South Ossetia. They don't yet have any information about their houses and family members that stayed.

These displaced people had to flee the violence quickly; as a result, they could not take any documents with them, such as ID cards. They are unsure where to go and what to do next. They do not have critical supplies such as mattresses, blankets and bed sheets and, because of the violent ordeal that they've endured, they're distrustful of almost everyone.

The number of displaced people is rising by the hour here in Gori. Many are suffering from anxiety and panic attacks, and are in desperate need of psychological counseling.

According to the local government data, no food or supplies had been delivered to those taking shelter at Kindergarten #8 in Gori. That changed today, when Mercy Corps supplied 100 displaced people with a three-day supply of food and hygiene supplies as well.

Read more ▸