The Story of These Letters Humiliates People and the Profession
Tengiz Jopua, Abkhazian public and political figure.
ApsnyHabar ―"Letters of happiness," as they've been dubbed by the public, are being distributed to schools and medical institutions. Teachers and doctors are being "strongly encouraged" to sign a letter addressed to deputies, asking them to ratify this agreement. The authorities imply that failure to do so will result in not receiving their salaries.
Public figure Tengiz Jopua commented on the situation, labelling the letters as "letters of despair and hopelessness" from the Abkhaz authorities, reflecting their desire to shift responsibility for the promises made by President Aslan Bzhania onto the citizens of the Republic.
The Parliament of Abkhazia made a decision regarding 'apartments', but Tengiz Jopua believes that deputies have a stance on arbitration and the investment agreement that differs from that of the Abkhaz authorities. However, the president and the government refuse to acknowledge this. They have made promises in Moscow without consulting deputies or the public and are now pressuring deputies to change their stance through threats and coercion. Why should doctors and teachers be held accountable for the actions of an administration that has taken on unfulfillable commitments? Since when does the Abkhaz government seek the opinions of doctors and teachers? When they allocate hundreds of hectares of Abkhaz coastal land to their associates and investor friends under the guise of privatisation, when they hand out Abkhaz resorts and sanatoriums, and when they direct the bulk of the budget to self-maintenance, leaving pennies for culture, education, and healthcare, why don’t they consult schools and hospitals on how to proceed? Why do they only remember their people when serious problems arise? "We elect a very cowardly government, one that is incapable of taking responsibility for its actions and shifts this burden onto ordinary people at the first sign of trouble," Tengiz Jopua said.
Why, friends, did you start with doctors and teachers when you have your own party and supporters? Let them sign these letters and put their names on them, agreeing that Abkhaz lands should be handed over to foreign investors who are given astronomical concessions that likely do not exist anywhere else in the world, concessions that will destroy the entire national economy. That way, when problems arise for the entire Abkhaz people, everyone will know whom to hold accountable.
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Education, healthcare, and culture are in catastrophic condition: in schools, plaster falls from the ceiling onto the children, parents are forced to buy textbooks for their children and repair classrooms at their own expense, and we treat ourselves on our own. We handle all our problems ourselves while the government lives detached from us, only remembering its people when it faces difficulties. "If you like to ride, you must also like to haul the sled; your masquerade and promises have nothing to do with us, deal with them on your own," Tengiz Jopua expressed his message to the authorities.
I consider myself part of the teaching staff, having worked as a university lecturer for a long time, and I believe that the story of these letters humiliates people and the profession. Where was this document created, this standardised paper being distributed to all schools? Do the people who drafted it think that after years of governance by “sectoral professionals,” the education system in Abkhazia has declined so much that teachers, doctors, and cultural workers have forgotten how to read and write? They live in regions, they have their deputies, and if they have a stance on this matter, they are capable of formulating it themselves to their representatives, Tengiz Jopua asserted.
The opposition claims that certain threats are being made alongside the distribution of these letters, including threats of dismissal for those who refuse to sign. Government representatives, however, state that signing is voluntary. Observing this situation from the outside, it is clear that this is happening "voluntarily-compulsorily" because the atmosphere surrounding these letters and the "Kozak-Bzhania protocol" is so charged with threats to Abkhazia, its people, and both the income and expenditure parts of our budget. There are promises of reduced funding, passport revocations, and other unspecified threats, making it unnecessary to say anything explicitly—just placing such a letter in front of someone makes everything clear.
By visiting schools and forcing people to sign, the authorities are essentially making them accomplices in their actions and transferring responsibility onto them. It is disgraceful and humiliating.
This article was published by ApsnyHabar and is translated from Russian.