This year, Azerbaijani-Georgian communities across Georgia came together to celebrate Novruz with a variety of events and festivities.
Georgian-Azerbaijani Communities Embrace Novruz
read more
CATEGORY RESULTS
Beyond Borders: Parajanov Centennial Marked in Yerevan and Tbilisi
This year marks the hundredth anniversary of the birth of legendary ethnic Armenian film director Sergei Parajanov. Very much a child of the South Caucasus, Parajanov’s work encompassed Armenian, Azerbaijan, Georgian, Moldova, and Ukrainian influences, with his legacy living on today.
Tbilisi’s Armenian Community Celebrates Christmas
Almost two weeks after Christmas was celebrated elsewhere in the world, and a day before Georgia celebrated Orthodox Christmas, Tbilisi’s ethnic Armenian community celebrated its own on 6 January this year. According to the census in 2014, some 53,000 ethnic Armenians reside in the Georgian capital while some 168,000 ethnic Armenians make up Georgia’s second largest ethnic minority, not including those residing in the breakaway region of Abkhazia.
Georgia celebrates EU candidate status
On December 14, the European Council granted EU candidate status to Georgia. An important step, celebrated the following day in the capital Tbilisi, both by the authorities and the population. However, the path towards the EU still remains ahead.
New Narratives Necessary for an Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace
Commonspace, a publication by LINKS Europe, has published my latest on the need for positive and alternative narratives in the Armenia and Azerbaijan conflict. This has been a problem for decades and while any grim reality needs to be reported on that should not be at the expense of genuine real-world positive examples that can at least represent a glimmer of hope for two societies that remain isolated from each other.
Ethnic Incompatibility or Coexistence? Armenians and Azerbaijanis in Georgia
Despite the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict that has waged for three decades, and despite the ethno-nationalist narrative of alleged ‘ethnic incompatibility,’ the two groups do actually co-inhabit and co-exist in many villages, towns, and cities in Georgia. Ever since first hearing about the ethnic Armenian-Azerbaijani co-inhabited villages from Michael Andersen, a Danish journalist, in 2008 I’ve made a point of visiting them ever since to at least offer one positive example of co-existence between the groups albeit in a third country.
Europalia 2023: Cultural Diplomacy Strengthens Ties Through Art and Music
Earlier this month Georgia was the theme of the Europalia biennial in Belgium. With a rich history of art, culture, dance, and music of its own, it was therefore encouraging to see that one of the performers from the country was the ethnic Azerbaijani Ashiq Nargile. This was a welcome inclusion of a representative of Georgia’s largest ethnic minority in the programme.
Armenians and Azerbaijanis Dance Under One Sky in Georgian Village
Nestled in the hills and forests of Georgia just a kilometre from the country’s border with Armenia, the residents of Khojorni, a small village numbering just 635, held on 18 November the first of what it hopes will be an annual multicultural festival, Under One Sky. Though such events are not uncommon throughout the country, what made this one special was that the population comprises one made up of ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis.
20 Years After the 2003 Armenia Presidential Elections
Opposition protest demonstration, Matendaran, Yerevan, Armenia © Onnik James Krikorian 2003 This month marks the 20th anniversary of the Rose Revolution in Georgia that brought Mikheil Saakashvili to power. Though Misha's rule was to deteriorate rapidly by the time...