In Abkhazia, Russian frontier guards prevent Georgian schoolchildren from getting to school

Twelve schoolchildren from different villages of the Gali District of Abkhazia were detained by Russian frontier guards on January 20 in the morning on their way to the school located in Chkoushi village of the neighbouring Tsalendzhikh District of Georgia. On that very day the children were released. The authorities of Abkhazia in exile are concerned with children's further attending Georgian schools.

Let us remind you that this incident was discussed yesterday, on January 20 at the first this year five-sided meeting under the mechanism on incident prevention and reaction held in the city of Gal. The Georgian party again expressed its concern with restrictions of crossing the border on the Inguri River.

As stated by Dali Khomeriki, Minister of Education of the Abkhazian government in exile, the children were making their way along a bypass road from Saberio village to their school in the Tsalendzhikh District, when they were detained by Russian frontier guards, who ordered to show Russian passports and go along the central road.

The frontier guards detained the children, returned them to Gal and kept them there for several hours, until their parents arrived. The, the children were released, the "Georgia Online" Agency reports.

"Earlier, there was no Russian post in this section; while the today's fact can indicate that frontier guards are going to block this roundabout road. If it happens, it will make problems, first of all, for 60 schoolchildren living in Saberio. They won't be able to go to the Tsalendzhikh District, where they attend the Georgian school. They'll have to go to the Russian school in Saberio. I think that the today's incident is aimed right towards this end," the Georgian website "Club of Experts" quotes Dali Khomeriki as saying.

Ruslan Kishmariya, plenipotentiary of Abkhazian President, explained in this context that there are several check points in the border, and children can freely cross the border in the established places, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.