Pick a Date: The Battle against Fascism

The day celebrating victory over fascism once again divided Georgian society. Overwhelmed with all the constitutional hassle, the local political circles confronted each other over the date of the global holiday. Politicians can’t agree whether it should be celebrated on May 8 as it is in Europe or on May 9 as in Russia. This debate between the government and opposition has been going on for a while now, however, due to the peculiarities of Georgian politics, the undertones vary from year to year. And in this sense May 9 2017 proved special.

The series of misunderstandings began a few days before the actual date, when the Putin-affiliated bikers’ club, the Night Wolves, decided to congratulate Georgia on the holiday. Adorned with Russian symbolism and so-called Georgievsky Ribbons, they planned to arrive and celebrate at the Memorial of the Unknown Soldier in the heart of Tbilisi - Vake Park. This resulted in the first wave of protests from the political opposition and society. Celebrities vowed to seize the Russian symbols from Putin’s friends: "If the Russian bikers show up, they shouldn’t count on Georgian hospitality," said various Georgian singers and artists. “If the Night Wolves aren’t violating any laws in the Baltics, they are allowed to enter those countries. However, they are met with a series of peaceful protests. We shouldn’t fall to their provocations or confront them physically; we should meet them with a silent protest,” the government said in response to the complaints.

After lengthy hesitation, the Georgian Dream government decided to close the border to the Russian moto-club anyway and dozens of Night Wolves were turned back to Vladikavkaz from the checkpoint in Larsi. Nevertheless, later, a few were still able to make it to Tbilisi, only to have their Georgievsky Ribbons confiscated by a police officer in Vake Park.

Existing conflict caused by the Russian Bikers was further stirred by the fact that on May 9 the former mayor of Moscow, Yury Luzhkov, and his wife Irina Baturina, paid an incognito visit to Georgia. Although claiming it was just a coincidence, the scandal has been enhanced for a different reason. By entering the territories of the occupied region in 2006 - 09, the ex-mayor of Moscow violated the Law of Georgia on Occupation, which is a criminal offense charged with up to six years in prison. And this fact resulted in the main “holiday” confrontation between the government and opposition: while the opposition demanded Luzhkov’s arrest, the government tried to avoid confronting the Kremlin. The debates went so far that May 9 and the Victory over Fascism got lost somewhere beneath the daily disputes.

So, when should Georgia celebrate the victory over fascism? May 8, when representatives of the USA, Great Britain and France signed the unquestionable capitulation of Germany in a in the French city of Reims, or on May 9, when at 12:03 a.m. Moscow time, in the presence of the Allies, the Soviet Union received Field Marshal Keitel’s signed Act of Military Surrender in one of the few surviving buildings in Berlin. Interestingly, from 1948-64, May 9 was not an official holiday, only being celebrated through governmental greetings published in newspapers.

Political analyst Soso Tsintsadze believes that the emerging discussions about the date might mean that Georgia prefers to celebrate it with civilized Europe and all this even though Georgia made a great contribution to the battle against fascism together with the other USSR countries. “Whatever the outcome of this debate might be, the date of Victory over Fascism will always be May 9 for those 9,000 WWII veterans residing in Georgia” Tsintsadze says.

Regardless, the political leaders of the Georgian government and opposition graced the Memorial of the Unknown Soldier with flowers on May 9 this year. As per tradition, the President and Prime Minister of Georgia gave their speeches addressing the veterans who had gathered in Vake Park. “May 9 is the greatest triumph of humankind over evil and we, the Georgians, with our small population, can proudly say that precisely Georgians and Georgia have a great part in this victory," said President Margvelashvili.

Premier Kvirikashvili linked the celebration with the veterans, saying: “It is our duty to pay honor to all those people who sacrificed their life and health for their descendants to live in a peaceful world. It was this great sacrifice that made it possible to stop fascism. I bow my head before these people who are among us today. It is the duty of the government to constantly express how thankful we all are.”

Zaza Jgarkava