The School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University held the tenth meeting of Georgian and South Ossetian civil society representatives on January 11 – 14, 2012 in Bethlehem. This dialogue was a continuation of meetings held from 2008 to 2011, the first of which took place in December 2008, in the conference center of the Institute on Mason Neck, in the state of Virginia. The process “Point of View” is a continuation of informal or civil diplomacy after the war in August 2008, which was catastrophic for Georgian-Ossetian relations.
This time, 23 participants took part in the informal meeting, including representatives of international and non-governmental organizations, and also advisors from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the UK and United Nations Development Program. All attendees participated in the meeting as private persons and did not represent interests of different organizations.
During the dialogue participants discussed the current situation, different initiatives which are aimed at the restoration of mutual understanding and confidence between Georgian and South Ossetian societies, and also the long-term prospects for the process “Point of View.”
Within the frame of the dialogue “Point of View,” participants discussed a number of unresolved questions and highlighted new topics. Specifically, there is sustained interest in the Leningori/ Akhalgori district. The problem of water and gas supply of Georgian and Ossetian villages in the Leningori/Akhalgori district is still not resolved, which disturbs participants of the meeting. Participants confirm the opinion that rehabilitation of the irrigation system installations, together with gas supply to the Leningori/Akhalgori district, aside from technical and economic aspects, includes humanitarian contents and should be solved without their politicization, and with assistance from international organizations.
There was also information shared about the state of search efforts for missing people in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone.
During the three-day dialogue, the sides managed to move forward mutual understanding of some other questions.
There was discussion of various international and local non-governmental organizations, including “Saferworld,” the organization “Nonviolent Peace Force,” United Nations Development Program, International Center for Conflict and Negotiation, Association of Women of South Ossetia for Democracy and Defense of Human Rights, Association of Widows and Wives of Invalid Participants of Armed Conflicts, University of California in Irvine’s Center for Citizen Peacebuilding, Institute of Nationalism and Conflict Studies, and also the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the UK.
All participants of the meeting were especially interested in learning about the current status of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This learning made it possible to draw conclusions relevant in the context of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict.
During its 26-year-old history the Institute, now the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University, has repeatedly participated in similar civil diplomacy initiatives, for example, in Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and on the territory of the former Soviet Union.
Participants and organizers are thankful to the Confidence Building Early Response Mechanism (COBERM), European Union, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and the United States Institute of Peace for support of the meeting.
For more detailed information or for an interview with Susan Allen Nan, please apply to Jim Greif – tel.: +1-703-993-9118 or email: <[email protected]>.