HR/98/7
13 February 1998

The United Nations Human Rights Office in Abkhazia, Georgia, has expressed serious concern to the local authorities regarding the violation of the rights of parents to choose the kind of education their children receive.

Since 1995, following an order from the authorities, children starting school in the Gali district of Abkhazia, Georgia, are only offered education in Russian speaking classes. After three years of this policy, it has resulted in grades 1 - 3 being taught primarily in Russian. However, the population of this region is estimated to be nearly 100% ethnic Georgian. The remaining higher classes are taught in Georgian, which was previously the normal policy for all grades, in the nine traditionally Georgian language schools in this district. The aim appears to be to phase out Georgian as the language of instruction, and convert all schools to the Russian language. This is a cause of anxiety among parents in this district.

In the remaining two schools in this district - School No. 1 which opened in the 1940s, and a secondary school in Primorsk - the Russian language was traditionally the language of instruction. Approximately 95% of the students in these schools are ethnic Georgian, the remainder being ethnic Armenian, Greek and Russian. Since 1994, in accordance with a decree issued by the de facto Abkhaz authorities, teaching of Georgian language and literature was no longer allowed in these schools.

The parents of the children in the Gali district began protesting these policies to international organizations in 1996, and in October 1997, they brought it to the attention of the UN Human Rights Office in Abkhazia, Georgia.

The head of the Human Rights Office, Elisabeth Stam, said the issue of language in schools was highly sensitive and urged the authorities to respond to the requests from the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) that the Georgian language be reinstated as the language of instruction for ethnic Georgian students, and that Georgian language and literature be taught in the two Russian language schools.

The concern by the UN Human Rights Office in Abkhazia, Georgia, which is jointly staffed by the United Nations and OSCE, was communicated to the de facto Abkhaz authorities in Sukhumi and referred to the situation in the Gali district of Abkhazia, Georgia. The response from the Abkhaz authorities, most recently on 4 February, during talks with Ms. Stam on the issue, is that they do not approve of the Georgian history books, and they would concentrate on Abkhaz schools and Abkhaz language as a priority.

The right of parents to choose the kind of education given to their children is strongly protected in international law, as seen in Article 26(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Article 4(a) of the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education; Article 2 of Protocol 1 to the European Convention on Human Rights; Article 13(3) of the United Nations Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; Article 18(4) of the United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and Articles 5 and 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as in other international treaties.

Security Council Resolution 1077, of 22 October 1996, established the UN Human Rights Office in Abkhazia, Georgia with a mandate to promote respect for human rights, contribute to a safe and dignified return of refugees and internally displaced persons, and to report on human rights developments. The programme of the Office includes human rights monitoring and technical cooperation. The last human rights report on Abkhazia, Georgia, can be found in the Secretary General's report to the Security Council (S/1997/827).