Lack of “human rights culture” and weakness of institutional protection of human rights in the South Caucasus

The main focus of this paper is the analysis of reported level of (dis)trust towards the Ombudsmen in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, based on the findings of CRRC’s Caucasus Barometer survey. During the period from 2008 to 2013, trust towards the respective country’s Ombudsman declined in all three countries. Both bivariate and regression analysis suggest that the nature of (dis)trust towards the Ombudsmen is different in each country, but in all cases it is positively correlated with reported trust towards major governing bodies. Although the respective Laws are clear that this is an independent institution, our finding suggests that, in public perception, Public Defenders represent the government – and this perception may hinder efficiency of this institution to serve as promoters of “human rights culture” in their countries.peer-reviewe

Attitudes Towards Immigrants in Georgia: Myths of Tolerance and Empirical Evidence

This paper is based on CRRC's 2015 Caucasus Barometer survey findings and analyzes attitudes reported by the population of Georgia towards immigrants. The authors argue that behind the manifested tolerance, there is empirical evidence of rather ambivalent attitudes towards immigrants. Immigration is becoming increasingly visible in Georgia's social, economic and cultural life, and attitudes towards immigrants may serve as a proxy for attitudes towards "others" in general. Specifically, negative attitudes towards immigrants may indicate a specific manifestation of a deeper fear of "others". As little academic or policy work has been done in this direction in Georgia, the conclusions the authors derive, beyond their academic importance, may have highly important practical policy implications, as they may help to shape policies addressing tolerance among the population of Georgia in general

Public Opinion on Public Opinion: How Does the Population of Georgia See Public Opinion Polls?

Although 6% of the population of Georgia reported not knowing anything about public opinion polls in 2015, polls - especially those focused on political issues - have become a visible part of the political landscape of the country. However, decision makers most often use the results with a specific agenda in mind. As CRRC's 2015 Caucasus Barometer data suggest, attitudes towards poll results are ambivalent. However, there is a clear expectation that the government should consider the results of public opinion polls when making political decisions

The EU as a "Threat" to Georgian Traditions: Who is Afraid, and Why?

This contribution gives an overview of Georgian public opinion towards the EU based on a survey conducted in May 2017. The analysis focuses on the perceived relation between Georgian traditional values and closer integration with the EU by looking at the characteristics of those people who report the perception that the EU threatens Georgian traditions

Lives apart? Experiences of transnational motherhood by Georgian labour migrants to Italy and their children

International labour migration processes of the last decades saw increasing numbers of solo female migrants employed in the developed countries. Many of these women were mothers who left their children in the sending countries and thus gave rise to a controversial phenomenon of transnational motherhood. The present thesis is based on the first empirical study of intergenerational narratives of mothers, Georgian labour migrants to Italy, and their children, left behind in Georgia. Mothers’ international labour migration is a challenge to the traditional ideology of motherhood. Although unconsciously migrant mothers often adhere to “alternative”, “rational”, future-oriented model(s) of parenting, they continue to live their experiences in the framework of traditional understandings of motherhood, which appears to be unequipped to “frame” transnational motherhood as, from its point of view, mothers’ choice to leave their children is reprehensible, yet transnational mothers’ physical absence is not an equivalent of “leaving” their children. Informants’ narratives strongly suggest that long periods of physical separation did not jeopardize bonds between mothers and children in transnational families. While informants’ selection bias is probable, the mother-child bond was not “broken” and the very essence of motherhood remained intact. Many forms of mothers’ and children’s online co-presence were documented during the interviews. Interviews also prove that the Internet cannot be considered a solution to the problem of family separation, experienced painfully by both mothers and children: it may reduce the pain caused by separation, but cannot be a substitute for mothers’ physical absence from their families. Despite the pain caused by separation, mothers’ emigration appeared to be the right decision made for the good of the family. Interviewed mothers almost univocally reported readiness to “keep going on”, and continue working in emigration to help their children until physically able to do so, because, as they put it, “motherhood never ends”

Young people in Latvia and Georgia: Identity formation and the imprints of traditions and globalization

Youth in the post-Soviet countries have faced the challenges of identity formation in concomitance with the processes of state-building in newly independent states. This paper focuses on young people aged 14 to 19 in seemingly different post-Soviet countries, Georgia and Latvia, who grew up after the collapse of the Soviet Union in independent countries striving towards Europe and its values. Based on qualitative interviews conducted in schools for the <#funding-source;>Horizon 2020 CHIEF project, the paper discusses some aspects of young people’s identity formation, and how they see themselves in national and European contexts. Along with some similarities evident in both countries, such as young people reporting a very strong sense of national belonging and identity, the data also show important differences when it comes to young people’s perceptions of Europe in Latvia and Georgia, as the latter report some reluctance in regards to accepting European identity and values

Lack of ‘human rights culture’ and weakness of institutional protection of human rights in the South Caucasus

The main focus of this paper is the analysis of reported level of (dis)trust towards the Ombudsmen in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, based on the findings of CRRC’s Caucasus Barometer survey. During the period from 2008 to 2013, trust towards the respective country’s Ombudsman declined in all three countries. Both bivariate and regression analysis suggest that the nature of (dis)trust towards the Ombudsmen is different in each country, but in all cases it is positively correlated with reported trust towards major governing bodies. Although the respective Laws are clear that this is an independent institution, our finding suggests that, in public perception, Public Defenders represent the government – and this perception may hinder efficiency of this institution to serve as promoters of “human rights culture” in their countries

Inconsistent (Dis)Trust in Polls in Georgia: Wrong Expectations?

In CB 2017, the CRRC continued to measure the population\u2019s trust in public opinion polls\u2019 results in Georgia. While almost half of the population reported trusting poll results themselves, a much weaker belief was recorded that \u2018people around\u2019 trust the results of public opinion polls conducted in Georgia. Only a quarter of the population reported trusting public opinion poll results and, at the same time, believed that people around them also trusted them. Three quarters, on the other hand, agreed that polls help all of us obtain better knowledge about the society we live in. This paper presents some of the inconsistences in the attitudes towards polls in Georgia, confirming one of the major findings based on the 2015 data: there is so far little certainty in the Georgian society about public opinion polls