Gvantsa Tvaliashvili – Immigrants for Georgia

QvemoQartli.ge is launching a new column “Emigrants for Georgia.” We will introduce you to the assessments of active citizens who have left Georgia. We ask what they think about the current situation and what solutions they see. The respondent of the column is Gvantsa Tvaliashvili, a youth worker and an active member of the regional civil sector.

Gvantsa Tvaliashvili: I am a 31-year-old “evergreen student,” so to speak. I have a master’s degree in sociology, and for the past 8 years I have been working in the civil sector in various fields, as a facilitator, trainer, youth worker, and project manager.

Journalist: How long have you been in emigration and how do you see Georgia’s problems from there?

Gvantsa Tvaliashvili: I have been living and studying in Sweden for a year and a half. Georgia’s problems from emigration are especially emotional and painful. A sense of regret and injustice, that your country could have developed faster instead of regressing.

Journalist: What do you think about the current situation in Georgia? What do you consider to be the biggest problem?

Gvantsa Tvaliashvili: I consider the biggest problem in the current crisis in Georgia to be violent approaches and a biased judiciary, which serves solely to maintain the power of one party. Citizens have no sense of justice and security.

Journalist: What should society do?

Gvantsa Tvaliashvili: Society should unite, awaken a sense of empathy and solidarity. The life and freedom of each member of our society should be more important than personal sympathies.

Journalist: As an active member of the civil sector, what do you think is the current state of the civil sector in Georgia and what should be done by the international community to strengthen it?

Gvantsa Tvaliashvili: The civil sector is being systematically stigmatized and weakened. This is also facilitated by the new legislation on foreign influence agents. The international community must support in various directions, one of the most important at this time is the mental health and safety of people working in the civil sector in the light of the “blackening” that we are facing.

Finally, I would add that I have a feeling as if history is repeating itself, whatever verse, poem, story or history we have learned so far is coming to life before us, the feelings and experiences of repressed authors..

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