Abandoned buildings and devastation in Abkhazia

Blogger nodima writes: After the Georgian-Abkhaz war of 1992-1993, devastation reigned in Abkhazia. Some of the houses were shot or burned, others remained intact, but their inhabitants left their homes forever. Both of them were and still are a terrible sight.

(Total 26 photos)

Source: Journal/nodima

1. We entered Abkhazia by train, and during the short trip from the Russian-Abkhazian border to New Athos, we managed to see many ominous monuments of the long-past war. The railway itself, which runs through the most beautiful places in the middle of mountain gorges and along the Black Sea coast, is in a terrible state, and until recently there was no railway communication here at all. Now the Moscow-Sukhum train passes here several times a week.

2. We rode alone in an empty carriage and watched abandoned buildings appear from time to time.

3. From some places it just blew hopelessness.

The railway stations of passing Abkhaz cities and railway stations best of all reflect the devastation that is happening here.

4. Gudauta.

5. Railway station Psyrtsha.

6. The once most beautiful station building in New Athos.

7. On closer inspection, it looks even more sad.

8. Well, it’s better not to go inside at all.

9. By the way, despite the fact that the only train stops at all major stations, it is impossible to buy a ticket at any station. The only working railway ticket office is located in Sukhum.

10. In Sukhum, you can often find houses where half of the apartments are occupied and the other half are abandoned.

11. Most often they belong to Georgians who were forced to permanently leave Abkhazia, and local laws do not allow them to be given away or other residents to be settled there. So they are abandoned.

What did I know about the history of Abkhazia before this trip? Only that in the early 90s, as in many other territories of the former Soviet Union, there was a war for independence here. Moreover, I, like many, probably, believed that it was a type of fashion for gaining sovereignty, and that as a result, Abkhazia, which had always been part of Georgia, received an illusory political independence recognized by Russia in exchange for economic dependence on it, and in general, there is nothing to feel sorry for the Abkhazians.

But talking with local residents, I found out that everything was not quite like that. In fact, Abkhazia never belonged to Georgia, it was part of the Russian Empire, and after the revolution it was forcibly annexed to the Georgian SSR. Moreover, all leading positions in the Abkhaz Republic since then have been occupied by Georgians. The entire party nomenklatura, which sat in the building of the Supreme Soviet in Sukhumi, consisted of Georgians. When the Soviet Union began to burst at the seams, Georgia declared that it would cope with its own internal problems and sent troops into the territory of Abkhazia. But after a quick offensive, the Georgian troops met fierce resistance from the Abkhazians, reinforced by Russian weapons and the mobilization of other peoples of the Caucasus. After the counter-offensive, the Abkhaz managed to recapture Sukhum and push the Georgians back into Georgian territory.

12. After the end of the war, the Abkhazians decided not to restore the building of the Supreme Council, so that it would serve as a monument for the invaders, they say, Georgians, there is no more place for you here.

13. And so stands in the very center of the city a chic high-rise building “with empty eye-socket windows”, as Yuri Shevchuk sang.

14. There are still traces of bullets on many houses.

15. Many abandoned buildings are already overgrown with plants.

16.

17. The building of the police station in New Athos.

18. And finally, I bring to your attention a series of photos from the abandoned New Athos camp site. I'll probably skip the comments here.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

To the honor of the Abkhazians, I would like to add that in fact, not everything is as bad as it might seem after viewing all these photographs, because they reflect only a small part of the Abkhazian reality. A lot is being done to restore normal life, abandoned buildings are being restored little by little, at the very least, the tourism sector is being established - I can compare with what I saw here 10 years ago. Of course, one can compare Abkhazia with the Balkan countries that emerged after the collapse of Yugoslavia and recovered after hostilities in a much shorter period, but still we must not forget that in the case of Abkhazia, we are talking about a small state, practically unrecognized by anyone, dependent on its patron neighbor with very doubtful future. In spite of everything, my family and I liked it in Abkhazia (you can see this by reading the rest of the photo report) and I want to believe that someday the “country of the soul” will be able to fully recover and return to its former greatness.