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Item The “4 + 1 Program” in Higher Education Institutions as a Strategy for the Integration of Ethnic Minorities(2020) Mikhanashvili, IngaOne of the most important issues in contemporary Georgia is the protection of national minorities’ rights and civic integration promotion. To increase access to higher education and therefore to promote civic integration of ethnic minorities, in 2009, by the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia, based on amendments made to the Law on Higher Education, educational program in Georgian Language training was launched. The program aimed to let ethnic minorities to be enrolled in higher education institutions based on the results of the Azerbaijanian, Armenian, Ossetian and Abkhazian language tests of General skills and afterward, to study the Georgian language at the level which is necessary to continue studying under the bachelor's program. Based on the results of the general skill tests in Azerbaijanian, Armenian, Abkhazian and Ossetian languages, the rules for enrolling students in higher education institutions were defined as a temporary measure, the validity of which expired at the end of the 2018-2019 academic year. Therefore, we think it is necessary to evaluate the results of the educational program in the Georgian language, to summarize the opinions and recommendations of the parties involved in the implementation of the program. The educational program presented by the Ministry of Education in 2004 aimed to create equal conditions for all entrants when applying to Georgian higher education institutions. Under this reform, unified national exams have been introduced since 2005, but in the first year of the reform, only twenty ethnic minority entrants became students, a much lower rate than in previous years. To eliminate this negative effect of the reform, the Ministry of Education has started implementing a "favorable policy" for ethnic minorities. This study aims to assess students' perceptions and attitudes about the effectiveness of the Georgian language training program (4 + 1 program) initiated for ethnic minorities in 2009 and implemented within the framework of the National Civil Integration Action Plan; Also, to analyze the goals of the introduction of the 4 + 1 program in the education system. In the report, by using the integration theoretical framework and statistical data analysis method, I studied statistical data on the number of students representing ethnic minorities in Georgian universities; analyzed the goals and motives of the Ministry of Education while introducing "4 + 1 program"; also analyzed the official statistics provided by the National Center for Examinations and Assessment and the Center for Education Quality Development. As a result of the study, after the launching of the program, an increase in the number of ethnic minority students in Georgian universities and an improvement in their knowledge of the Georgian language was revealed.Item Access to Medicines for Pension Age Population in Georgia(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Verulava, Tengiz; ვერულავა, თენგიზThe pension age population belongs to the largest risk group within the insurance sphere. Healthcare for pensioners often represents catastrophic expenses and has become the major reason for their impoverishment. Families in Georgia spend about 60% of all their healthcare expenses on medicines, this being one of the highest rates across the world. There is some evidence that the high costs of medicines are due to a combination of factors, including insufficient usage/administering of generic medicines, lack or inadequate utilization of prescription mechanisms, insufficient financial limit for medicines within the state healthcare programs, and aggressive marketing by the pharmaceutical industry. The government has been trying to decrease the out-of-pocket spending via different strategies, including universal health coverage (UHC). Since February 2013, the Universal Health State Program came into force, targeting two million of uninsured citizens and providing a basic package for primary health care and emergency services. Pension age population form the largest at-risk group within the insurance sphere. The most rapidly increasing and unaffordable share of healthcare expenses falls upon medicines. This paper examines financial access to medicines and the satisfaction with the insurance policy within the Georgia State Health Insurance Program for pension age population. This paper examines financial access to medicines and the satisfaction with the insurance policy within the Georgia State Health Insurance Program for pension age population. Using a randomized selection method, 500 pension age persons were interviewed by means of direct questioning. According to the Social Service Agency, there are 45,455 pension age recipients of medical insurance in Tbilisi with a total of 673,183 pension age population across the country (National Statistics Service of Georgia, 2013). Out of the 500 persons (62.4% women and 37.6% men) interviewed. The sample population covered all the districts of Tbilisi. The interviews took place in clinics. The largest segment of the interviewed population was between the ages of 71-75 (35.2%). While the Georgia State Health Insurance Program for pension age population includes some compensation for medicines, medical insurance does not provide guarantee for financial accessibility to medical service. The results show that out-of-pocket payment is the most common health financing mechanism in Georgia. The cost of healthcare for pensioners often represents catastrophic expenses and becomes the major reason of their impoverishment. Based on the results, medication expenses represent one of the most important components of the medical service for the insured pensioner population. Over 55% of the pensioners have to buy medications at least once a month and 34% purchase them at least once or twice a week. Most of the interviewed insured population believes that buying medicines, combined with low financial accessibility to relevant medical services, is the most significant problem for their families. The awareness level of the insured persons about medication coverage and payments for medical services provided by the insurance package within a certain limit is low. The majority of those interviewed (64%) stated that their out-of–pocket expenses exceeded this limit; 20.4% exceeded that amount by 80 GEL or more. The fact that 32.8% of the insured population cannot afford medications prescribed by their doctors also points out at low financial accessibility for medicines. The majority of those insured did not know that the insurance company compensates medicine expenses within the policy annual insurance limit. Additionally, 58.8% of those who have to pay for certain types of medical services covered by the state insurance program out of their pockets were not aware about the limits. Reduction of catastrophic healthcare expenses should become the chief aim of the government health policy. It applies to the high-risk population, those under the poverty line and the pension age population, as well as to those with chronic diseases. Accordingly, based on the findings, it is reasonable to expand the insurance program for the pension population and also provide more reasonable coverage of medication expenses.Item Adoption of the Coastal Zone of the Black Sea in Georgia Based on the Principles of Blue Economy(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Melikidze, Valerian; მელიქიძე, ვალერიან; Chkhaidze, Vladimer; ჩხაიძე, ვლადიმერ; Kobaidze, Salome; კობაიძე, სალომეOne of the most important resources for the sustainable development of Georgian economy is the coastal zone of the Black Sea which has to be developed under the principles of blue economy. The term of blue economy is a new concept for Georgia which is oriented to the sustainable development representing the extension of the concept of green economy in the water areas of the seas and oceans. Blue economy emphasizes on the rational utilization of the existent resources and maintaining the sustainability of the specific eco-system. The priorities of blue economy are: Fishing industry, Aquaculture, Fishery resources, Marine and coastal tourism and the sea transportation. The objective of the given work is to evaluate and assess the natural and resource-related potential of the Black Sea coastal zone in Georgia, explore the biodiversity and estimate its current level of economic development based on the principles of the blue economy. The presented work is current and important as, on the one hand, it is preconditioned by understanding and implementing the principles of blue economy which is nominated as priority in the economic agenda of the European Union and, on the other hand, it defines and explores the capacity and potential of the development of this concept in the coastal zone of the Black Sea in Georgia as a whole and at the level of the municipalities of Zugdidi, Lanchkhuti, Khobi, Poti, Ozurgeti, Kobuleti, Batumi and Khelvachauri. The development of the coastal zone of Georgia according to the principles of the blue economy has to become an integral part of the social and economic politics of Georgia. The work researches the capacity of nature and the potential of resources on the coastal zone of the Black Sea in Georgia, it also concentrates on the marine and land biodiversity. Moreover, it assesses the existent conditions of economic development and the prospects for the future implementation. The paper focuses on the major economic activities realized in the coastal regions. The four leading sectors operating in the coastal zone of the Black Sea in Georgia are: Private sector, Public, Non- Governmental Organizations and educational/expert and their knowledge and awareness to share their competence and preparedness to implement the principles of the blue economy are assessed and explored. The research incorporates several methodical combinations. On the first stage of researching the relevant scientific literature is reviewed. Statistical data of the National Statistics Office of Georgia are analyzed, the database of the entrepreneurs is learnt and the investigations of the bordering countries of the Black Sea and the Mediterranean are elaborated. On the basis of the analysis of the secondary data the questionnaire of the empirical research is structured and afore-mentioned four target groups are stood out. In the process of research, the awareness regarding the blue economy and related realized activities and future perspectives are salient. The semi-structured interviews used on the first stage served to find the competent interviewees in the field of blue economy to then hold in-depth interviews respectively.Item Alcântara (Lisbon): From Industrial District to Tourist Destination. A Survey(2020) Zarrilli, Luca; Brito, MiguelThe tourist image of Lisbon and its uniqueness was shaped through the existence of “popular neighbourhoods”, spaces of intense and unchangeable social life where the elements of cultural life are present as a landmark of each different space. Alcântara, Bica, Alfama, Mouraria, and Madragoa are examples of traditional Lisbon neighbourhoods, which today continue to be closely associated with specific representations of the city and of its people’s ways of life within the city As part of the tourism development that Lisbon has been experiencing in recent years, one of the emerging neighbourhoods is Alcântara, a former industrial district that is currently undergoing a functional reconversion. Situated by the river Tagus, next to the museum district of Lisbon (Belém), and not far from the town centre (Baixa), it presents a different tourist supply: besides the traditional local heritage, composed of monuments, palaces and museums, it is probably the best district of Lisbon to recall the industrial era, its buildings, activities and ways of life. This article deals with the transition process of the neighbourhood from an economic fabric based on industry to a tertiary type of area, within which a special reference to the tourism sector is given. As a reaction to the increasing demand of the tourists, several hotels, apartments and other types of local accommodation have emerged in the neighborhood. In Alcântara tourists seek for the trendy local restaurants, unique libraries, modern business opportunities and young entrepreneurs’ shops, which concentrate in former industrial facilities now reconverted into cultural and commercial activities, such as LX Factory and Village Underground. To understand this transformation a qualitative-quantitative method was used. Besides the documental analysis and the field research, a survey was conducted aimed at understanding the type of tourists visiting the district, their motivations and their assessment of the characteristics of Alcântara. The results show that Alcântara is an attractive district for young tourists interested in discovering trendy places. Alcântara’s barycentric position is also significant both in the transport network and in the tourist geography of the metropolitan area of Lisbon.Item At the Origins of the Development of the Code of Parliamentary Ethics: Experience of the Constituent Assembly of Georgia (1919–1921)(2020) Zedginidze, NatiaIn a modern democratic state, a moral understanding of legislation is essential to establish a fair environment. One of the most important ways to ensure this is professional codes of ethics. Code of ethics helps to increase the sense of responsibility of officials and politicians at all levels of government. One of the most important ethical codes governing the field of politics is the Code of Ethics for Parliamentary Conduct. The Constituent Assembly (1919–1921) was the first democratically elected legislature in the history of Georgia. It is true that documents of ethical rules of conduct were not developed separately at that time, but in the legal acts adopted by the Constituent Assembly we meet moral-ethical provisions that are characteristic of modern codes of ethics. It should also be noted that in some cases it is difficult to find a dividing line between legal and ethical norms, as it is impossible to ensure justice without considering ethical principles in law. The report discusses the issues of political ethics based on the stenographic reports of the Constituent Assembly (1919–1921), the legal acts of that time, and the analysis of the press. On November 22, 1918, the National Council of Georgia and the Government of the Republic of Georgia approved the electoral regulations of the Constituent Assembly, which had to ensure democratic, fair and free elections. The Electoral Statute of the Constituent Assembly established both the necessary norms for free and fair conduct of the election campaign, also the mechanisms of appropriate punishment in case of their infringement - the deprivation of liberty or a fine (Collection of Legal Acts of the Democratic Republic of Georgia 1918–1921). During the election process, it was not allowed to cover election calls, to threaten persons carrying out agitations, dissemination of false information about a candidate, electoral agitation in churches and other places of worship, both in the form of sermons and verbal or written appeals, violence against a person through fraud, intimidation, to obstruct the exercise of the right to vote freely through the abuse of power or the use of economic means against those with the right to vote, to win a voter with promises, by providing personal or property benefits to him/her or his/her family member, etc. (Electoral Statute of the Constituent Assembly). It is noteworthy that the norms set out in the Electoral Regulations or other legal acts of the Constituent Assembly in modern democratic states are mainly regulated by the Code of Ethics. For example, neither the founders of the Democratic Republic of Georgia had stayed out of the spotlight the provisions prohibiting simultaneous holding two or more positions, which help the officer to understand and faithfully fulfill the obligations imposed by the mandate and as soon as the Constituent Assembly began its work, on March 29, 1919, the Bill on the incompatibility of membership in parliament and civil service was discussed. The main basis of the submitted Bill was the protection of dignity of the Constituent Assembly; Moral freedom of legislators and ensuring their conscientious work in legislative, controlling or other activities (Minutes of the Constituent Assembly of Georgia, 2019). The regulations of the Constituent Assembly also regulated the “Rules of Reasoning” and strictly required the “observance of decency”. The orator was obliged not to use insulting and generally derogatory words toward Constituent Assembly when discussing. In case of violation of these conditions, the Chairman would apply the measures specified by the regulations. This approach has helped to promote political culture and discussions on issues of vital importance for the country (Collection of Legal Acts of the Democratic Republic of Georgia 1918– 1921). Thus, the provisions adopted by the Constituent Assembly 100 years ago had uniquely progressive nature, and their analysis allows us to understand the scale of political culture and state thinking of political parties and state figures during the First Democratic Republic. Against this background, to evaluate the current problems of the electoral process and political culture and consider the historical experience to recover the current political process.Item A Blueprint of Turkey’s Covid-19 Policy(2020) Babaoglu, Cenay; Kulac, OnurIn 2020 a new worldwide pandemic, which was named as Covid-19 started in Wuhan/China and affected deeply different regions rapidly. In the process, governments have devised various roadmaps and policies to combat the pandemic. To this end, various measures have been taken, and several restrictions have been imposed on citizens, especially curfews. Turkey has been one of the most affected countries in terms of the number of cases from the Covid-19 pandemic. The Turkish government and the citizens played a major role in keeping pandemic under control with their efforts and devotion. In this context, regulations have been made in many policy areas, especially health. New hospitals have been established, their work patterns have been changed, and Covid-19 focused preventive, and treatment studies have been carried out. Besides, economic support packages were announced, social arrangements were made, and education policies were changed. Also, personnel policies were reorganised, and new social policies were implemented. During this period, Turkey sent protective equipment, health equipment and health technologies to different countries free of charge under international aid. Crowdfunding and crowdsourcing campaigns that took place within the country have also been successful at both local and national levels. Turkey has performed successful process management in this process and has come forward as a best practice with its low spread and mortality rates during the epidemic. Therefore, the policy in Turkey needs to be scrutinised, to draw lessons for new cases. The foremost aim of this study is to analyse the policies made in the pandemic process in Turkey. In this context, responses and the initiatives of the official policy actors will be analysed. On the other hand, unofficial and international actors contributing to the pandemic process will be examined. Later on, the roles and effects of think tanks and street- level bureaucrats will be discussed. While analysing the Covid-19 policy Turkey, the decisions taken during the process will be handled within the framework of the decision-making approaches in the literature. Moreover, it is aimed to have a comprehensive policy analysis by given priority the concepts of policy transfer and lesson drawing. This study reveals that Turkey's policies regarding the pandemic process are based on some of the fundamental aspects such as coordination, public relations, usage of technology and task distribution.Item A Caricature as a Mean of Visualization of the Nazi Editorial Policy and an Anti-Bolshevik Ideological Weapon(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Shamilishvili, Manana; შამილიშვილი, მანანაOur presentation for the conference deals with a topical issue. It focuses on the importance of the political caricature and its propagandistic function. A caricature plays a major role in informing the public and understanding topical socio-political problems critically. The ideological- political intensions of satirical drawings emotionally illustrate an image of a particular epoch. This form of self-expression is an effective weapon for an author to expose shortcomings of their time. It almost acquired a function of a documentary source in the totalitarian governance, when through a visual message it was possible to say anything symbolically, sarcastically or sometimes enigmatically what was prohibited and punishable. The sarcastic language acquired a special meaning during the Second World War when an artist who was critical to the Soviet system gave it a function of an effective weapon of a denunciator and fighter against it. This is clearly demonstrated by the cases of detainees charged with anti- soviet activities during the Second World War and the following period. We have studied them within the grant project “Bolshevism and Georgian Literature since the Beginning of the Second World War until the CPUS 20th Conference (1941-1956)” financed by Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation. Based on the materials found in the Archives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, we present the newspaper activities of those Georgian cartoonists, who fought on the side of Nazi Germany in order to free Georgia from the Bolsheviks. With the efforts of Georgian publicists and legionnaires gathered around the Nazi newspaper “Georgia” published in Berlin, the Anti-Stalin Campaign was widely disseminated aiming to free the homeland from the Bolshevik tyranny with the help of Nazi Germany. In the paper we present the exposing style of Georgian cartoonists on the basis of the analysis of the samples published in the newspaper “Georgia”. Despite the apologia of German Nazism, the visual material adapted to the editorial policy hid the idea of fighting for the independence of the homeland. In those propagandistic messages declared as visual narratives, the brutality of the Stalinist regime and the wish to fight against it were clearly seen. We have used “Four Theories of the Press” by famous American media researchers Fred. S. Siebert, Theodore Peterson, Wilbur Schramm, as well as William Hachten’s revolutionary concept of the press as a theoretical framework of the research. We have chosen the connotational semiotic analysis as a research method. In this way, the purpose of the use of the non-verbal semiotic system is better illustrated that aims to strengthen the messages delivered through the verbal code. In the end, reading the allegorical truth of the caricatures using this methodology, enables us to clearly show the picture of the epoch and to expose the violent attitudes of the Soviet regime.Item Catch-all Policy of the Parties in Member and Non-Member Countries of European Union (on the Example of Sweden and Georgia)(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Mukbaniani, Lika; მუკბანიანი, ლიკაThe parties have one of the key areas in political processes. Their reorganization and transformation has been going on years. It was changing systematically, in content, qualitatively, though it did not lose its role and importance. The parties, as in the most states of the world, as in Georgia, are the main creators of political process. Ideology and the party have been in close association with each other for years, though if we look at modern party systems, in most cases; obviously, there will be alienation between them. Catch-all and less ideology of the parties are becoming more noticeable. Catch-all parties have the biggest chance of winning in the elections, because they prefer the priorities to voters and not ideology, accordingly, they respond better to changes than the parties within an ideological framework. The term – Catch-all policy of the parties, which was acknowledged by political scientists and observers, was established by German-American scientist Otto Kirchheimer, who worried about transformation of the parties. He wrote that Swedish social-democracies minimized the political competition at the expense of their program’s reduction. It should be noted, that the ideology of the present government party of Georgia can be assessed as a social-democracy. The well-known scientist Alen discusses Sweden among “the third model” countries, which embarked on this course at his time. In fact, the third way marks an alternative, which can be located between state socialism and the capitalism of the free market. The political situation of Georgia, at this stage, is more bias to the third way model. Only the future will show, how this model will work out. The example of Sweden will enable us to understand the ongoing political processes in Georgia profoundly, as the political system of Sweden is a constitutional monarchy, and in the present political space of Georgia, a tendency towards the model of a constitutional monarchy is clearly being revived; In the past, Sweden had a conflict with Russia, which is bounded with its territories. Georgia also has a border with Russia and the biggest problem in the country exactly remains the conflict with Russia. To compare Georgia with Sweden politically is rather difficult. After a 70-year regime Soviet Union, the country tries to escape from its problems. Georgia has a lot of resources, to be able to join the developed countries. The natural resources of the country, as well as the geographical location and a successfully conducted economy will aid Georgia in becoming a politically strong state. Sweden, thereby, with its infrastructure, tourism, water power and natural resources could solve social and economic problems. By maintaining neutrality in the 20th century, Sweden could raise the level of living of the population, which strengthened it and helped it become one of the leading countries in the world. Sweden, during its existence, carried out one or more reforms to solve economic and social problems, in addition, during the years, it has preserved and only after the rebuilding of the country – in 1995 it became a member of European Union. The example of Sweden is considerable for such a country like Georgia, because it has a lot in common with Sweden. The purpose of research, regarding the example of Sweden and Georgia, is to show characteristics of catch-all policies of the parties, what finally, affects the effective development and formation of the state.Item Challenges of Gender Equality in Media (Case of Georgia)(2020) Gersamia, Mariam; Toradze, Maia; Markariani, LianaAccording to UNESCO’s World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development report, while there is progress, women journalists are still more exposed to assault, threat or physical, verbal or digital attack than their male counterparts (UNESCO, 2018). Georgia (country) faces challenges regarding feticide, domestic violence, employment of women, early or forced marriages, sexual harassment, blackmailing of female journalists, and there is a low awareness about gender equality. According to international reports (MSI, Freedom House) the media landscape in Georgia is partly free. The goal of the research is to analyze the media landscape in Georgia from a gender equality perspective and provide recommendations for raising awareness on gender- sensitive issues. According to EBU gender equality guidelines (2019), in Europe, women represent 44% of the public service media workforce, but only 25% of executive positions. Stereotypes and biases persist in media and there is an urgent need to show a realistic picture. Media figures can strengthen or reduce stigmatization and stereotypes regarding groups and individuals. Traditionally, the news industry has been dominated by men (Ross et al., 2018) and researchers argue (Melin-Higgins, 2014; Ruoho & Torkkola, 2018) that woman in media often have top positions in woman’s magazines or in media product about beauty at etc. However, in Georgia analysis confirms the hypothesis, that women are dominated in the media sector (and not only in woman’s magazines). As to the positioning, according to GMMP’s replication study (2015), there were 88% Female and 12% Male presenters (Macharia et al., 2015) in Georgia. In addition, Also in Georgian media organizations, 48% of reporters were female and 52 Male (Connor et al., 2010). Study answers research questions as it follows: • RQ 1: is there gender inequality regarding workplace and positions in Georgian media (TV, print, radio, online)? • RQ 2: what are the themes covered by women and men journalists? • RQ 3: what gender-related issues do women face in media organizations? To answer the above-mentioned questions, mixed methodological approaches have been be used: content-analysis (Research Period: 2019: from June 1 till December 31) and survey (225 journalists have been interviewed in April, 2020). Recommendations (based on findings) are provided for media organizations, educators and media practitionersItem The Challenges of Post-Soviet Transformation in Georgia: Democratization and its External and Domestic Rivals(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2021-06) Matsaberidze, DavidThe research will uncover main challenges of democratization, being the pre- requisite of Europeanization in Georgia, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union through looking at it via the prism of triple (Claus Offe) and quadruple (Taras Kuzio) transition models under the problem of fragmentation of [political] public sphere in Georgia, referring to the political public sphere (Jurgen Habermas) in particular. The research claims that the aspects of quadruple model (politics, economics, culture and state/nation) highlight much on the post-Soviet and emerging challenges of Georgia setting problems to democratization process in the country resulting in democracy decay or regression, influenced either by the trap of modernization vs. democratization or the rise of populism and illiberalism of different kinds. The paper reflects on the division between state and nation via juxtaposing and comparing the state-building and nation-building processes as a problem of democratization vs. modernization in Georgia through path- dependence and path-contingency approaches of the post-Soviet/Socialist transformation(s). The process of state-building and nation-building will be explained through application of the quadruple model, which highlights cracks in political, economic, cultural and national aspects of democratization in Georgia. These aspects will be deconstructed through juxtaposition of the external security vs. domestic security issues – influencing on the behavior of the local actors (political elites), therefore on the nature of domestic regime. The research relies on qualitative analysis and employ the discursive approach (speech act analysis in particular) to highlight the narrative strategies of the pro-Western and pro-Russian actors through uncovering and deconstructing their strategies in politics, media and civil society as the reactions to pressing external and domestic security challenges, which cause the fragmentation of the [political] public sphere in the country.Item Changing Political Geography and Geopolitics of the Central Europe(2020) Gachechiladze, RevazThe region of Central Europe comprises contemporary Poland, Hungary, Czech and Slovak Republics. Austrian Republic as a rule is considered a part of the region of Western Europe. The notion of “Central Europe” had been used intermittently since 1920s and it generally meant a group of states that had appeared on the territory of the former Austrian-Hungarian Empire which had dissolved in 1918. Only Poland re- established itself as a state on the territory previously (since the 18th century) annexed by Austria along with Russia and Prussia in. The emergence of Czechoslovakia and Poland in 1918 in concrete boundaries of those days could be explained by the urgency of the already established national projects of the major ethnic groups as well as the geopolitical goals of Entente, especially those of the French Republic. France had a desire to sponsor rather loyal to itself states to the east of Germany, defeated in the WWI but considered in Paris as still potentially dangerous one. Geopolitical calculations were a reason which permitted the both states, Czechoslovakia and Poland to expand at the expense of territories with ethnically heterogeneous population. A former part of Austria-Hungarian Empire, Sudetenland, predominantly populated with ethnic Germans and some territories with ethnic Hungarians on the left bank of Danube and foothills of the Carpathian mountains had been joined to Czechoslovakia. Poland received access to the Baltic Sea which effectively made East Prussia an exclave of Germany. After war with Bolshevik Russia poliethnicity of population of Poland increased. In comparison with the abovementioned states Hungary considered itself the most aggrieved as large territories settled with ethnic Hungarians were to be ceded to the neighbouring states of Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia, and Austria. In interwar period geopolitical codes of Central European states frequently contradicted each other, there existed serious territorial claims. Political-geographical peculiarities which developed in the region became a reason of “self-justification” of expansionism of Nazi Germany in 1938-1939 that led Europe to WW2. After WW2 Central Europe turned into the sphere of interests of the Soviet Union and had undergone “Socialist transformation”. Sovereignty of all the states of the region was restricted. Large contingents of the Soviet Army had been deployed in each of them. The whole region had been joined to the military organisation of Warsaw Pact ruled from the Kremlin and the region was considered an outpost against NATO. The sovereignty of the states of the region had been restored after the end of Cold War and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact (1990). Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary signed in Visegrad (Hungary) the document establishing a regional group in 1991. After the peaceful dissolution of Czechoslovakia into Czech and Slovak Republics (January 1, 1993) thes regional group acquired the name of TheVisegrad Four (V4). In the beginning it was intended as an instrument to support common policy of joining the EU while now V4 is used as a mean of coordination of foreign policy within the EU. The region of Central Europe joined the EU in 2004. Such membership is a prerequisite of economic and social development of all the states of the region and, simultaneously, a guarantor of avoidance of intraregional conflicts.Item Civil Society in Hybrid Regimes: The Challenges of Democratization in Georgia(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Melikidze, Giorgi; მელიქიძე, გიორგიThe nowadays established term “Hybrid Regime” combines a broad group of states and covers the elements of democracy and authoritarianism. The hybrid regime is generated by the democratization of the authoritarian regime. The prospect of its transformation into an electoral democracy depends on many factors, and first of all on the development of a civil society. Totalitarianism causes the collapse of civil society and its restoration in post-totalitarianism conditions is a very difficult process. The stimulation of civil society is conducted by the non- governmental sector, although this is not a perfect civil society. The goal of this work is to determine the role of civil society in the ongoing process of democratization in Georgia. The democratic transformation of the hybrid regime is associated with the development of civil society. The special focus is made on the concept of civil society, because if it has only a facade nature, then it has no value for democratic transformation. According to the research hypothesis, in countries where a clientelistic / elite civil society was formed, democratization was impeded, which caused stagnation. In the 1990s the stimulation of civil society formation in Georgia had been carried out by a creation and activation of nongovernmental organizations, but these organizations were funded from the West. The NGO sector, which acted on behalf of the civil society, played a significant role in the “Rose Revolution.” A precedent of cooperation between the newly formed government and civil society was created, but this happened only at the initial stage. As during Saakashvili governance also in subsequent years, the civil society was opposed to the government. Civil society in post-soviet Georgia was not distinguished by a high level of development, which negatively impacted on the democratization process of the country. The building of democracy in post-soviet Georgia is the main statement of any government, however the country couldn’t go beyond the status of a hybrid regime. Georgia belongs to the countries which didn’t incline to the democratization or to authoritarian governance. The main challenges of Georgia are the rule of law, the election process and the state functions. The authoritative organization “Freedom House” called such governance “Outlaw Democracy”. The last ten years were a turning stage for Georgia, not only due to the Historical and Political processes, but also in terms of democratization. It is interesting, that from 2008 up-to-date the different indicator of democratization changed its position, however the civil society firmly kept an average indicator. A qualitative method is used in the research, such as in-depth, interviews with experts.Item A Comparative Analysis of ASEAN Countries’ Responses to Human Trafficking during COVID-19(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2021-06) Lin, LeoThe COVID-19 is not only a pandemic impacting people‟s health; it is also a transnational threat that has threatened the rights of vulnerable groups of people who have less voice. The Southeast Asian region has been facing the challenges of non-traditional security threats, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, low-income families in ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries have faced tremendous risks that rely on governments to address the issue. In particular, women and children are often suffered from unequal access to resources, services, and opportunities. According to the UNODC report, fifty-one percent of victims in East Asia were women, and children comprised nearly a third. The research questions of this paper are, first, what are the key human trafficking risks to vulnerable groups of people related to the COVID-19 crisis in Southeast Asian countries? Second, what are the ASEAN governments‟ responses to those risks? In this paper, the author identifies key human rights risks to children related to the COVID-19 crisis and then analyzes the ASEAN government‟s responses to children‟s rights issues during the pandemic. The four countries selected are Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam due to the unique trafficking profile of each. This paper provides an empirical analysis using an analytical framework developed by the author. Data were collected from primary and secondary sources such as the international organization‟s official websites and ASEAN countries‟ official publications, official records, and newspapers. This researcher employs a cross-case comparative method using a pattern-matching technique to analyze the data. This paper concludes with policy recommendations and steps that ASEAN countries should take to protect women and children‟s rights in the pandemic and mitigate its devastating effects.Item Comparative Analysis of Protection of Young People at Work in Georgian and European Union Laws(2020) Urotadze, JabaThe research examines the level of protection of young persons’ (any person under 18 years of age) safety and health at work in Georgia compared to the European Union. Young persons are particularly vulnerable to risks related to working conditions, therefore the state should pay special attention to implementing international standards in this field. According to Article 78 of the Constitution of Georgia: “the constitutional bodies shall take all measures within the scope of their competences to ensure the full integration of Georgia into the European Union”. On the way to integration, Georgia has to approximate its legislation with the EU law. Georgia ratified the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) in 1996. The EU Directive 94/33/EC is based on the convention and establishes more specific provisions of protecting young persons’ safety and health at work. In Georgia, provisions concerning the protection of young people at work are given in the Labour Code (the LC) and the Organic Law on Occupational Safety. The upper limit of working time (including overtime) is not directly determined in the LC, even for children. A minimum uninterrupted rest period per week and daily breaks for workers regardless of age is not regulated in the LC. Georgian Labour Inspectorate has insufficient competences, only having the right to examine occupational safety and health conditions, but not work and rest time regulations. In relation to child labour, there are other provisions needed to be harmonized with EU law. In the research, Comparative analysis of EU Directive 94/33/EC on Protection of Young People at Work with relevant clauses of Georgian labour law is conducted and recommendations are given to amend provisions in Georgian legislation regarding the protection of young persons’ safety and health at work.Item Comparative Analysis of Working and Rest Time Regulations in Georgia and European Union(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Urotadze, Jaba; უროტაძე, ჯაბაIn 2014, the “Association Agreement” was signed between the European Union and Georgia, which aims at deepening political and economic relations between the parties. According to the Agreement, Georgia will approximate its legislation with EU law in different spheres, including decent working conditions. The “Association Agreement” has annexes, where there is a list of EU legal acts and Georgia has to gradually harmonize its legislation with these acts. The Labour Code of Georgia regulates labour and its concomitant relations in the territory of Georgia, unless they are otherwise governed by other special law (e.g. Public Service Law) or international agreements of Georgia. In 2006, within the frame of liberal social-economic policies, a new Labour Code was adopted, which significantly worsened the labour rights of employees. The process of elaboration of labour legislation should not be conducted only according to the wish to alleviate burden on business and ignore minimal safety and health requirements at work – this is against European values. In June 2013, significant amendments to the Labour Code were made, after which the labour relations between employer and employee became more balanced. Although, in order to approximate Georgian labour law with EU standards, there still are some legislative amendments to be made. In the research, special attention is paid to one of the central aspects of labour law – working and rest time. In Georgia, the upper limit of weekly working time (including overtime) is much higher than in EU member states; the employer is not obliged to ensure that, per each seven-day period, every worker is entitled to a minimum uninterrupted rest period of 24 hours; in relation to working and rest time, there are other discrepancies with EU standards. According to article 26 of the Constitution of Georgia, the right to safe working conditions and other labour rights shall be protected by the organic law; it is also mentioned that the freedom of enterprise shall be guaranteed. Therefore, it is important to keep an adequate balance between these two constitutional rights: the law governing labour rights should not impose an unbearable burden on the employer, which will hinder economic development and job creation; in the meantime, the government should ensure that the labour law will provide protection of health and safety at work according to the EU standards. In the research: a) EU Directives given in the “Association Agreement” and related to organization of working and rest time are studied; b) Several EU member states’ experience on transposition of relevant directives are studied; c) Comparative analysis of above mentioned legislation with Georgian labour law is conducted and recommendations are given to amend Georgian legislation on working and rest time.Item Constituent Assembly of Georgia and Formation of Party System(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Matsaberidze, Malkhaz; მაცაბერიძე, მალხაზBy the time of the declaration of independence (May 26, 1918), different political parties and groups, formed in the Russian Empire functioned in Georgia. After the formation of an independent state, locally based parties were supposed to form the basis for the party system in the country, while others were forced to disappear from the political arena. The real influence of the parties should have been proved through elections of the Constituent Assembly. Those elections were held on February 14-16, 1919. 15 political units participated in the elections. They can be divided into four groups: • Political parties and their breakaway parts – 7 units; • Political groups created by the Georgian intelligentsia – 3 units; • Political associations of ethnic minorities – 3 (4) units; • Foreign political parties – 2 units. Political parties, which were created by intelligentsia hurriedly, on the eve of elections (Union of non-party members, Shota Rustaveli Party, Aesthetic League of Patriots) did not win the support of the electorate and no single deputy of the Constituent Assembly was elected from these parties. Representatives of the political units of national minorities (National Council of the Muslims of Georgia, Union of Muslims of Borchalo district, Democratic Group of Georgian Greeks, National Party of Abkhazians) ended the elections with the same result. From the foreign parties, Revolutionary Federation “Dashnaktsjutjun” won three seats in 1 The paper was prepared in the framework of the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation project “Constituent Assemble of Georgia: Experience of the Georgian parliamentarism”, Code: FR – 18 – 20157. the Assembly; Social-Democratic Party of Russia did not collect enough votes. As for the first group of parties in our classification, initially 4 out of the 7 units won the elections, later on, 6 units were represented in the Assembly. The composition of parties in the Constituent Assembly looked as follows: Political parties Main elections - February1919 1st additional elections – August 1919 2nd additional elections – May 1920 Social-Democratic Party of Georgia 109 105 102 National-Democratic Party of Georgia 8 7 8 Socialist-Revolutionary Party of Georgia 5 5 6 Socialist-Federalist Party of Georgia 8 9 9 “Dashnaktsjutjun” - 3 3 National Party of Georgia - 1 2 The elections of the Constituent Assembly and two years of its activities revealed some trends in the development of the Georgian political spectrum, in particular, a domination of the leftist political parties (they had 122 and, later on, 120 seats out of 130 in the Assembly), a weakening of the Social-Democratic Party (the number of deputies decreased from 109 to 92), a formation of the radical leftist wing (“Akhali skhivi” group) by 1921, and a unification of the Right political forces (formation of the “Democratic Party”). The party composition of the Constituent Assembly by February 11, 1921, looked as follows: Party Seats in the Constituent Assembly Social-Democratic Labor Party of Georgia 92 Independent Social-Democratic faction “Skhivi” 10 Democratic fiction (union of non-socialist parties) 10 Socialist-Federalists 9 Socialist-Revolutinaries 6 “Dashnaktsjutjun” 3 In the Autumn of 1921 elections of the Parliament of Georgia should have been held on the basis of the Constitution of 1921, however, the Soviet occupation led to dramatic changes in the development of the country.Item The Constituent Assembly of Georgia and the Batumi Oblast(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Orjonikidze, Tamar; ორჯონიკიძე, თამარThe Constituent Assembly of Georgia (1919-1921) is the most important stage in the history of Georgian Parliamentarianism. The study of its experiences is multifaceted and interesting, including the care of the restoration of territorial integrity of Georgia. During the first year of the work of The Constituent Assembly the jurisdiction of the Democratic Republic of Georgia did not apply to Batumi Oblast and Batumi Oblast was only returned to Georgia in July 1920. The Constituent Assembly systematically reviewed the issues of “marginal regions” and including the Batumi Oblast, the existing situation and the issue of their status in the state of Georgia. The work is prepared on the basis of the content analysis of the Stenographic Reports of The Constituent Assembly of Georgia (1919- 1921). The study showed, that in 1919 the condition in the Batumi Oblast was discussed on 7 meetings and in 1920 during 6 meetings of The Constituent Assembly. As a result of the survey the problems that were discussed in the respect of the mentioned Oblast are revealed. It was primarily to prevent the activities of hostile forces operating in the Batumi Oblast and to aid the development of a special state policy for integration the Batumi Oblast and its population into the Democratic Republic of Georgia. For the Batumi Oblast in accordance with the request of local political forces of Adjara, it was considered necessary to introduce autonomous governance in the composition of the Democratic Republic of Georgia. The issue was discussed at the sessions of the Constituent Assembly as well as on the session of the constitutional commission established by the Constituent Assembly, which was included in the 1921 Constitution of Georgia under the relevant Article (107). The separate regulation of autonomous governance should be developed separately (Article 108). The paper discusses the debates on this issue. Based on the biographical analysis, it was shown that three residents of the Batumi Oblast (Heidar Abashidze, Osman Mikeladze, Kadir Shervashidze) were members of the Constituent Assembly. It is important to consider the fact, that neither the main nor the additional elections have been held in Batumi Oblast. The work deals with the activities of these individuals in the Constituent Assembly. The Batumi Oblast was the last region of Georgia, which remained in the hands of the Georgian government during the February-March War of 1921 and was also a place, where the Constituent Assembly of Georgia completed its work. The last meeting of The Constituent Assembly was held in March 17, 1921 in the City Council building in Batumi. Based on the resolution, the Government of Georgia under the supervision of Noe Zhordania was granted the authorization. Afterwards he went into emigration to protect the interests of Georgia.Item Covid-19 Infodemic and Fake News in Georgian Social Media(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2021-06) Toradze, Maia; Markariani, LianaThe mankind has been battling fake news, misinformation and propaganda for years, however, this problem has become more threatening and persistent with the advancement of technologies. It is well-known, that spreading of any fake news needs a precondition – an event, which causes the intensity of its spread in a specific time. Recently, this precondition has become COVID-19 pandemic, about which an overabundance of information can be observed in traditional and new media. Thus, it is interesting and vital to research what place the fake news has held in information flow and what influence it has had on a society in a crisis. The significance of our research lies in the fact that it is conducted during the pandemic and examines the topics that are most often subjected to fraud. Scientific research about the origin of fake news and the consequences of its spread will help us share correct and verified information and aid the fight against fake news. The aim of this research is to demonstrate the causes and manipulators of the fake news, which was spread during COVID-19. Also to find out mainly what type of information is faked and what is the reason behind this (the ways of treating COVID-19, faked statistics, where the virus comes from, anti-vax movement, etc.). The study, in the future, will make a consequential contribution to combating misinformation and preventing its negative effects. In the research process, we observed the information about the corona virus published on the social media, particularly on Facebook, monitored the original sources of the information, separated the falsified information from the main information flow and identified the prime manipulators. The study was conducted over a one year period, from March 2020 to March 2021. On the first stage of the research, these hypotheses were developed: H1: During infodemic, the sharing of fake news and misleading of media users increases. H2: The information, which was spread on social media about COVID-19 is harmful and alarming, as it can have damaging influence on an individual‟s health. The research was based on the theory of Uses and Gratification. The following research questions were formed by the analysis of the theoretical framework: RQ1: What is the comparative share of Covid-19 information on the websites, that are regarded as original sources, during the infodemic? RQ2: What type of fake news was shared on social media about COVID-19? RQ3: Which specific manipulators are included in fake news about the spread of COVID-19? RQ4: What kind of responses and feedbacks does the fake news have (likes and shares)? RQ5: what were the impacts and results of the spread of fake news about COVID- 19? Quantitative and qualitative content analysis were used in the research, as well as a form of qualitative research - in-depth interviews conducted with media experts, psychologists and physicians. In this paper the fake news is structured by types and contents and the reasons for the origin of fake news and its influence on social media users is analyzed.Item Crisis of Democracy and a New Class in Georgia(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Darbaidze, Eka; დარბაიძე, ეკაGender equality can’t be achieved without women's economic strengthening and their equal involvement in economic activity. Economic empowerment of women is measured with their equal participation in the labor market and equal access to the resources. So, equal labor rights, as a precondition for equal participation in the labor market, are an essential component for the economic empowerment of women and gender equality. The neoliberal economic policy in the context of economic globalization is contributed to create a new class structure, that the British researcher Guy Standing called “Precariat”, which is characterized by new types of relationships and more and more instability in relation towards this class, while distributing wealth. Precariat is a new social class, whose representatives are forced to work in low-paid, unstable and temporary services, without any social insurance and even without maternity leave. Often, the representatives of the precariat class, are women who are forced to accept jobs like this. Neoliberalism is characterized with subordination, exploitation, and control towards women. The "new economy" discourse, which is idealizing "creative workers", often makes it possible to hide its’ “precariatizm”. Characteristics for the majority of jobs in global capitalism are: the precarious of women's work, fragmentation, low status and low payment accordingly. The techniques of neoliberal governments allow the “Precariat” to be permanent and continuous. For a long period of unemployment, in Georgia many women suffered with disqualification and were forced to move to the unregistered, self- employment field. Many of them have come out of the labor market, i.e. in the informal sector - "shadow economy", where they work without any safety and their rights are grossly violated. Families, who do not have the conditions to create a livelihood, especially in rural areas, to support their family and children are forced to move to large cities or abroad to find jobs, where they can’t meet the needs of the labor market and are under risk to be involved in various informal activities. In large cities of Georgia, legal rights of women, especially of those who are employed in cafes, bars, restaurants, shops and booths, are often violated and they have very difficult conditions at work. The main goal of our research is to study the current condition of women employed in the labor market of Georgia; How the existing national legislative framework helps the establishment of gender and social equality in the labor market; How Georgia's labor law protects employed women, in this case, the rights of women employed in our target group - service centers, and whether the national legislative framework guarantees their protection.Item Critical Analysis on the Institutional Design of Democratic Decentralization in the Public Sphere and Urban Spaces of Local Governments(Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi state university, Faculty of social and political sciences, 2019-06) Vargas-Hernández, José G.; ვარგას-ჰერნანდესი, ხოსეThe purpose of this paper is to conduct a critical analysis based on the institutional design of the democratic processes of the public sphere and urban spaces in the empowerment of local governments. The approach consists of a theoretical construction after reviewing some important developments in the issues of the roles of the state, economy, civil society and the media on the decentralization processes of empowerment of local governments in their public spheres and urban spaces. This critical analysis is sustained on the political ideology, macro institutional design, political leadership and authority, developed by the New Left´s theoretical approach. With this critical analysis, it is pretended to further develop the ongoing debate of the democratic decentralization and the implications of the roles of state, the economy, civil society and the media on the public sphere and urban spaces in the empowerment of local governments. Democratic deliberation analysis requires to understand the social and cultural dimensions of political contestation in new democratic spaces. New democratic spaces for political deliberation, not always rational, were more sites dedicated to manifest plural expressions of political activism and construction of alliances. Contestation is the core issue of democratic conduct that enables differences of political actors to surface rather than be suppressed. Urban democracy can be expressed as urban scale in democracy in cities through more radical democratic practices as creating a more democratic society under a neo-liberal agenda. Democratic decision-making in urban localities, as a right of the city, must contribute to the production of urban space, clearly differentiating from democratic enfranchisement in liberal democracies of the state. Local neighborhood control over local urban spaces for those that inhabit and make decisions over their future, are more democratic that the control exerted by the city authorities which may not result in democratic outcomes. Art expressions in urban spaces may contribute to make a more democratic city, as the urban places and town squares in ancient Athens used to be, where the theater and other art expressions were performed. One important difference between modernism and postmodernism urban spaces should be how to abandon antidemocratic local settings to build more democratic and social green areas where people can meet and have more freedom to express themselves and get more involved in democratic deliberation for decision making processes.