Child Soldiers Global Report 2008 - Georgia
| Publisher | Child Soldiers International |
| Publication Date | 20 May 2008 |
| Cite as | Child Soldiers International, Child Soldiers Global Report 2008 - Georgia, 20 May 2008, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/486cb1011e.html [accessed 5 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Population: 4.5 million (1.1 million under 18)
Government Armed Forces: 11,320
Compulsary Recruitment Age: 18
Voluntary Recruitment Age: 18
Voting Age: 18
Optional Protocol: not signed
Other Treaties: GC AP I, GC AP II, CRC, ILO 138, ILO 182, ICC
There were no reports of under-18s in the armed forces. Firearms training was available for boys and girls from the age of 15 in Patriot Camps.
Context:
In May 2004 Georgia regained control over the autonomous region of Ajaria without resorting to force. However, most of Abkhazia and South Ossetia remained unrecognized self-proclaimed republics.1 Georgia reiterated its aim to join NATO and strengthen ties with the European Union (EU).2 The USA continued to develop its training program for Georgia's army.3 The UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) continued to carry out peacekeeping activities, including monitoring the 1994 ceasefire between Georgian and Abkhaz forces, in co-operation with a Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) peacekeeping force.4
In August 2004 an attempt to retake South Ossetia militarily resulted in dozens of deaths.5 In July 2006 Georgia regained control of the Kodori Gorge in Abkhazia from a former paramilitary group which had continued to operate despite being disbanded. The authorities in Abkhazia regarded the action as a breach of agreements to demilitarize the gorge.6 Four Russian military officers were arrested in late September 2006 and charged with spying, and Russia subsequently imposed a range of sanctions on Georgia.7 The Russian government denied that a helicopter attack in the gorge in March 2007 was carried out by Russian forces.8
Government:
National recruitment legislation and practice
All male citizens and residents aged 18-27 were subject to conscription. Military service was for 18 months. Women, and men in the reserves after completing compulsory service, could join the army on a professional basis on a four-year contract.9
Georgia planned to switch to an entirely non-conscript army by the end of 2009. The increased costs were estimated at US$4,226 for the annual cost of every non-conscript soldier compared with US$1,001 for every conscript.10
Military training and military schools
The military schools which formerly existed in Georgia were reportedly no longer in operation and there was no military education in schools.11
There were four tertiary-level military academies.12 Of these, the NCO School admitted applicants straight from school; the Defence Academy had previously also taken school graduates, many from poor families and orphanages, and including 17-year-olds, but now restricted entry to graduates.13
The government strongly supported and fully funded a number of Patriot Camps around the country, which offered ten-day residential programs in gun handling, sport and leadership training for young people (male and female) aged 15-20. Handling guns, including automatic weapons, was taught by military trainers.14 In 2005, 15,000 young people attended Patriot Camps, and in 2006, 30,000.15 In 2006 the government announced plans to hold a camp in the Kodori Gorge.16 Opposition politicians were critical of the militaristic nature of the camps.17
Abkhazia
Abkhazia's 1995 Law on Universal Military Service set 18 as the minimum age for conscription. Boys were registered with the authorities at the age of 17.18
There were some reports that boys under the age of 18 had been conscripted illegally into the Abkhazia forces or released on payment of bribes, including in the ethnic Georgian Gali region under the control of Abkhazia.19 The authorities in Abkhazia denied that an attempt had been made in November 2005 to conscript ethnic Georgians.20 In March 2007 UNOMIG assigned a human rights officer to its office in Gali, to coordinate with the newly established non-governmental Human Rights Centre in the district.21
In the final two grades of school, between the ages of 15 and 17, pupils received "pre-conscription training for civil defence" for two hours a week. However, in many schools the course did not take place because of its obsolete nature and the lack of trained staff, and the Ministry of Education planned to produce a new course. Entrance to Abkhazia's Military Academy and entry to the reserve officer training corps in higher education institutions was limited to those over 18.22
In August 2007 it was reported that a military school in Abkhazia was to be reopened with support from the Russian armed forces. No details of enrolment policy were available.23
The Monadire paramilitary group
The Monadire paramilitary group based in Abkhazia's Kodori Gorge was officially disbanded in 2005 and disarmed by the Georgian government in mid-2006. It was reported to have had up to 700 members at times.24 It was not known if any of its members were under 18.
South Ossetia
The South Ossetian army reportedly followed the military regulations of the Russian Federation, with a minimum age of 18 for conscription. The bulk of its security training took place in Russia. Military service was for 18 months. A South Ossetian military official stated that there was no bullying in the army because soldiers served mainly in their home areas.25
* Titles of non-English language sources have been translated by the Coalition.
1 See, for example, Amnesty International Report 2005.
2 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister's Directives for 2007, undated, www.mfa.gov.ge.
3 "US Signs New Military Assistance Accord with Georgia", Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Newsline, 20 September 2006, reported in Georgia Daily Digest, www.eurasianet.org.
4 UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG), www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/unomig.
5 See International Crisis Group (ICG), Georgia: Avoiding War in South Ossetia, Europe Report No. 159, 26 November 2004, www.crisisgroup.org.
6 Giorgi Kupatadze and Inal Khashig, "Georgian – Abkhaz tensions rise over Kodori Gorge", Institute of War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), 25 August 2006, www.iwpr.net.
7 Claire Bigg, Russia: 2006 – A Year of Muscle and Missteps, RFE/RL, 28 December 2006, www.rferl.org; "Georgia orders Russia 'spies' held", CNN, 29 September 2006.
8 "Georgian official says Kodori attack came from Russia", RFE/RL, 14 March 2007.
9 Ministry of Defence, Armed Forces of Georgia, Military Service, www.mod.gov.ge.
10 J. Mazakhiroglu, "Military commissioners' offices will be abolished", Armeyskoe Zerkalo, 30 December 2006, www.zerkalo.az.
11 Confidential source, November 2007.
12 Ministry of Defence, above note 9, Educational institutions.
13 Human Rights Centre (HRIDC), "Students of the Military Academy voice a protest in front of parliament", 22 September 2005, www.humanrights.ge; Tamar Maisuradze, "The parade in front of the state chancellery", 24 hours press agency, 10 June 2005, www.24hours.ge.
14 Natalia Antelava, "Patriot games for young Georgians", BBC News, 19 September 2005; Lawrence Sheets, "'Patriot camps' cause concern in former Soviet republic", Morning Edition, National Public Radio (NPR), 12 October 2005, www.npr.org.
15 Government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, "President accompanied by guests visited 'patriot' camp", 25 May 2006, www.adjara.gov.ge.
16 "Georgia revives despite blockade – Saakashvili tells 'patriots'", Civil Georgia, 16 September 2006, www.civil.ge.
17 Natalia Antelava, above note 14.
18 Confidential sources, Abkhazia.
19 US Department of State, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2005 and 2006.
20 "UN Expresses Concern at Situation in Abkhazia's Gali region", RFE/RL, 7 November 2005; "Some of the conscripts detained in Gali region returned to their families", Novosti-Gruziya, 14 December 2005, www.newsgeorgia.ru.
21 Report of the UN Secretary-General on the Situation in Abkhazia, Georgia, UN Doc. S/2007/182, 3 April 2007.
22 Confidential sources, Abkhazia, March 2007.
23 "Separatists Open Military School", Georgian Times, 8 August 2007, www.geotimes.ge.
24 Nino Khutsidze, "Military expert on Kodori operation", Civil Georgia, 26 July 2006, www.civil.ge.
25 "Tskhinvali army begins spring draft", Regnum, 5 April 2006, www.unomig.org.
