Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

RFE/RL Caucasus Report 5/29/2011 2:59:33 PM A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about the countries of the South Caucasus and Russia's North Caucasus region. For more stories on the Caucasus, please visit and bookmark our Caucasus page .

 

Abkhaz Leader Sergei Bagapsh Dies Sergei Bagapsh, de facto president of the unrecognized Republic of Abkhazia, died in Moscow early on May 29, one week after undergoing lung surgery. He was 62, and had headed the republic since early 2005. More   Beyonce Dances Through War-Torn Georgia Careful viewers of Beyonce's "Run the World (Girls)" video will notice that as the American pop diva struts her stuff through a postapocalyptic landscape (walking two slobbering hyenas on chains, no less) she passes a sign along the road that seems out of place -- even in this jumble of sights and sounds. The sign is in Georgian, of all languages, and points the way to the capital, Tbilisi, as well as to Tskhinvali and Gori. More   South Ossetian Leader Explores Options For Remaining In Power Two proposals have been floated over the past month to enable the de facto president of Georgia's breakaway Republic of South Ossetia, Eduard Kokoity, to continue serving as president after the expiry of his second term. More   Big-Name Armenian Oppositionists Released Sasun Mikaelian, a former member of parliament, was serving an eight-year jail sentence on charges of organizing mass disturbances after the disputed February 2008 election. He was also found guilty of illegal arms possession. More   Call To Free Azeri Political Prisoners A group of Azerbaijani human rights activists and journalists is urging President Ilham Aliyev to release all political prisoners ahead of next year's Eurovision Song Contest in Baku. More   Jailed Azeri Journalist Released Jailed Azerbaijani newspaper editor Eynulla Fatullayev was released on May 26 as part of a presidential amnesty involving 90 inmates. More   Global Index Charts Year Of Continued Setbacks To World Peace The world became slightly less peaceful in the past year, punctuated by violent uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East, but also marked by successes in countries like Slovenia and Georgia. More   Two Dead In Georgian Protests Georgia's Interior Ministry says two people, including a policeman, died after riot police used water cannon and tear gas to disperse an antigovernment rally outside parliament in the capital, Tbilisi. More   Azerbaijan Joins Ranks Of Non-Aligned Movement Azerbaijan's move to join the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) comes with relations strained with the European Union over Baku's human rights record, and some observers suggest it could indicate a shift away from the West. More   EU Pledges More Funding As It Unveils Revamped Neighborhood Policy The EU will commit an additional 1 billion euros in its immediate neighborhood in a move that comes as a direct response to the Arab Spring but it will also shape Brussels' political and economic relationship with its eastern neighbors. More   Amnesty Launches Campaign To Free Azerbaijani Journalist; Pro-Regime Youth Fight Back The U.K.-based Amnesty International has just launched a smart Twitter campaign, led by some prominent British media personalities holding up signs calling for Fatullayev's release. More   Summer In Paris, Or Jail In Tbilisi? Hmm… What little suspense there might have been surrounding the current antigovernment protests in Tbilisi revolved around two grandiose ultimatums. More   A Street Poet At A Court Poets' Feast: Remembering Bob Dylan's Visit To Soviet Georgia As Bob Dylan turns 70 on May 24, his fans in Georgia are remembering a few strange days in July 1985 -- days which their idol spent in Tbilisi, the capital of what was then the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic. More   Celebrating Bob Dylan's 70th Birthday, In A Multitude Of Languages Iconic American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan is turning 70. His heartfelt songs have been translated into dozens of languages and have inspired poets around the world, changing the global landscape of popular music. Here's a look at Dylan's lasting imprint in RFE/RL's broadcast area. More   Georgia Protests: One Demonstration, With Many Interpretations Opposition protesters in Georgia gathered for a fourth straight day in central Tbilisi to call for the ouster of President Mikheil Saakashvili. While demonstrators say they want to see Saakashvili peacefully ousted, the government appears unfazed. More   Die Hard In Georgia: War As Caricature The film’s plot is so hopelessly crude and the propagandizing is carried out in such a one-dimensional, excessive manner that the end result is a kind of peculiar “anti-propaganda." More