Representatives of human rights organizations of Georgia Paata Zakareishvili, Manana Mebuke, and Vakhtang Komakhidze arrived in South Ossetia. In Tskhinval, they met with the South Ossetian Human Rights Commissioner David Sanakoev and representatives of non-governmental organizations. Presently, they are meeting with the RSO President Eduard Kokoity.
The OSCE Delegation headed by Special Representative of the Chairperson-in-Office Christopulos arrived in South Ossetia. The Delegation included Representative of 2010 OSCE Kazakh Chairmanship Bolat Nurgaliev and his advisor Serik Zhumabaev. In Tskhinval, the Delegation met with the Special Representative for Post-Conflict Settlement Boris Chochiev, Foreign Minister Murat Djioev, Deputy Special Representative for Post-Conflict Settlement Merab Chigoev.
The South Ossetian side is inviting human rights activists and organizations to visit the Georgian citizens detained in the prison in Tskhinval, reported the HR Commissioner of South Ossetia David Sanakoev, commenting on the fact of detention of and trial over Georgian citizens. According to Sanakoev, Georgian authorities are politicizing the detention and trial of Georgian citizens Levan Khmiadashvili and Victor Buchukuri. "Politicizing of this issue is unacceptable. We are inviting Georgian human rights activist to visit the Georgian citizens. Human rights related issues should not be drawn into political dimension. In majority of cases, the Georgian authorities consider them exactly within a political dimension. One of the examples is the above mentioned case", stated Sanakoev. Earlie, the South Ossetian authorities invited the convicts' relatives to visit them in the prison.
A delegation of the OSCE is visiting South Ossetia. This delegation includes the Special Representative of the Chairperson-in-Office Charalampos Christopoulos, Ambassador Boran Nurgaliev, Representative of the succeeding in 2010 Kazakhstan OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Advisor to Ambassador Nurgaliev Serik Zhumabaev and other representatives of the Organization.
South Ossetia provides the possibility for the relatives of the underage Georgian convicts to visit them in the detention facility in Tskhinval. The HR Commissioner of South Ossetia David Sanakoev addressed the Head of Mission of the International Committee of the Red Cross in South Ossetia with a request to help with informing the relatives and facilitate their visit to the minor convicts in South Ossetia. "Since the fate of these persons (Levan Khmiadashvili and Victor Buchukuri) causes great interest among the Georgian authorities, the RSO HR Commissioner is inviting the parents of the convicts to visit them at the detention facility from 9th to 12th December 2009,", read the letter addressed by Sanakoev to the ICRC.
The efforts on releasing the Ossetian hostages, abducted or illegally detained by Georgian law enforcement bodies and currently kept on the territory of Georgia, continue since 2008, told the Deputy Special Representative for Post-Conflict Settlement Merab Chigoev at the Parliament session. According to him, the work is extremely difficult.
"The Georgian side screams about the detention of Georgian citizens while there is an interest among international media to cover this issue.
On 3 December, the Special Representative for Post-Conflict Settlement Boris Chochiev met with the Head of the ICRC Protection Department Gilles Hansoul to discuss the meeting on the missing persons to take place in Yerevan with participation of parties concerned.
"I have also expressed our protest to the ICRC, namely the delegation in Georgia, in relation to non-fulfillment of their mandate which includes monitoring at detention places, where our citizens (South Ossetians) are kept in Georgia. In response to our requests and the requests of the relatives to visit the detainees (who were arbitrary arrested) and check their detention conditions, we have not received any information", said Chochiev.
The Georgian side released five hostages, citizens of South Ossetia, seized after the armed aggression of Georgia against South Ossetia in August 2008: Ibragim Zakharovich Laliev (1974), Lavrenty Tengizovich Kaziev (1974) – taken hostage on 8 October 2008 between the villages of Korkula and Khelchua, Yakov Grigorievich Tekhov (1941) taken on 13 October 2008 on the road from Khelchua to Disevi, Pavlik Konstantinovich Tekhov (1958) detained on 11 October 2008 between the villages of Korkula and Khelchua and Vladimir Fedeorvich Eloev (1973) detained on 31 April 2009 near the village of Orchosan in South Ossetia.
Scientific conference "The Republic of South Osetia: Search for Sources of Economic Development" finished in Tskhinval. The Conference resulted in agreements between the Governments of the RF and RSO on promotion and mutual protection of investments and establishment of trade delegations to the states. At the Conference, the Ministry for the Economic Development of South Ossetia and Ministry of Energy of the RF signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the sector of energy supply. The sides have also signed a joint 2010 Action Plan in the sector of tourism. The Ministry of Education, Science and Youth Policy and Federal Agency for Education of the RF signed a protocol of intentions on further development of cooperation in the filed of education.
The President of South Ossetia Eduard Kokoity received Tomas Hammerberg, the CoE Human Rights Commissioner. The HR Commissioner of South Ossetia David Sanakoev, the Minister for Foreign Affairs Murat Djioev, Special Representative for Post-Conflict Boris Chochiev also participated in the meeting.
The South Ossetian Presidnet underlined that the mission of the HR Commissioner was extremely important. "South Ossetian is ready for cooperation with Council of Europe, European Union and OSCE, as well as with other international agencies, in order to normalize the situation here, in the Caucasus|, stated Kokoity,- "however, we have serious questions in regards to our trust towards these organizations. Our repeated concerns and the necessity to prevent the tragedy that took place here in August 2008, did not find any understanding among the organizations, and very often, these international agencies took an active part in the distortion of the information about the real situation on The President drew the attention of the CoE HR Commissioner to the fact that "unfortunately, we have to criticize the today's mission of the Commissioner".