The interview is set to be a solemn affair. A year ago, when Ajaria was still under the domination of the local tyrant, Aslan Abachidze, the interview also took place on Gamsakhurdia street, but on the opposite pavement, at the headquarters of the new administration of the Ajarian government.

A frank handshake, a self-confident smile, 33-year-old Levan Varshalomidze is the new head of the Ajarian administration. His office no longer displays the baroque excesses of his predecessor. On the wall, hangs a portrait of president Saakashvili, along with some old photographs of 19th century Batumi.
Back then the Ajarian capital was renowned beyond the Caucasian mountains, attracting wealthy entrepreneurs and holidaymakers. A detail that makes sense when one knows that the new regional government has made the renovation of Batumi boulevard a priority – a local replica of the Promenade des Anglais in Nice, France. The aim is to restore its past splendour. It will be made beautiful once again and will quadruple in length, from 800m to 5km.

An ambitious project whose aim is to regain the city’s prestige. The Varshalomidze government has certainly just set itself a utopian challenge. The mistake is not looking ahead, but rather looking backwards, complain the region’s inhabitants. “We are not going to solve the problem of unemployment just because Varshalomidze has put it into his head to plant palm trees along the Boulevard”, comments Sekho, 64.

The bitterness is understandable. Facelifts, renovation and the extension of the Boulevard, new buses, what next? This policy of renovating façades, both literally and metaphorically speaking, is coming up against the economic asphyxiation of the region.

The wind of reforms

Yet Varshalomidze continues to promise better days. “We have started roadworks on the Sarpi-Kobuleti road, as well as a junction to serve the centre of Kobuleti. These are long-awaited projects. The public roads here are practically impassable. There’s little point in talking about asphalt when this section of road is only a succession of potholes. It’s also hard to imagine how the Georgian government could have left these important roads between Tbilisi and Turkey in such a state, Turkey being one of Georgia’s main business partners. “The work will be financed by Ajarian and national funds”, emphasises our interviewee. The budget? “Three million dollars”. The amount doesn’t seem realistic and the governor doesn’t appear too knowledgeable on the subject.

Another innovative project which the new political class is working on is the modernisation of the water supply. An investment of 50 million dollars, financed in part by the German bank KFW and the Japanese government (up to 10 million dollars). The project, set to last two years, is due to begin in autumn 2005. For the time being, the young administration hopes that this project will be well-received by the Ajarian people.

Coasting between a federal subject and an autonomous republic

Regarding some of the accomplished reforms, Levan Varshalomidze insists on an important issue: thinning the ranks of the local bureaucracy. “We have reformed the administrative system. Out of Abachidze’s eighteen ministers, we did away with the ministries of Defence, Security and the Interior”. Many fields of government are now controlled by Tbilisi.
“For example, the Turkish-Georgian border is controlled by Tbilisi. But it is a national security issue, what could be more normal? In the questions and answers game, Varshalomidze could win hands down. Yes, the presence of Interior Ministry troops is legitimate. “Moreover, a police reform could soon allow the people to elect their sheriffs directly, like in the United States,” he says. We have our own Constitution. Reforms are ongoing, but we will remain independent. »

Drugs corridor

In several areas, especially in the fight against organised crime and drug trafficking, Ajaria leaves the Tbilisi authorities to deal with it. Although Abachidze claimed that drug trafficking doesn’t take on his patch, going so far as to sue French journalists for making allegations on television about coca plants in Ajaria. The new government’s policy is to play on the level.
“Yes, drug trafficking has always existed in the region. And they are still doing it. Last week in Sarpi, we detained a Turk in possession of 700 grammes of heroin,” says the head of the Ajarian government.

Negotiations on co-operation in the fight against drugs are also underway between Batumi and coastal Turkish authorities near the border with the Black Sea, especially in the town of Trabzon. Drug routes abound in the region, heroin, opium, ecstasy, and other chemical substances, he says. A recognised web of drug trafficking heading out of or into Turkey, Georgia, Iran, Central Asia or Azerbaijan.

The silent media

The topic of drug trafficking remains taboo. And the governor treads carefully along this slippery slope. It is true that in recent times he has made some mistakes. The latest to date is the handling of the crisis involving TV Ajaria. On 3 March, journalists marched in Batumi to demonstrate against censorship and pressure placed by the local authorities on TV Ajaria and its head of information, Nato Imedaishvili, who has now resigned. The same day, Eka Kherkheulidze, a member of the local parliament and of the ruling party, the National Movement, accused Varshalomidze of co-optation.

“How could I have prevented this resignation?” he said today, perplexed. But, how can you talk about press freedom when the ex-director of TV Ajaria, Zaza Khalvashi who gained the position after the ousting of Abachidze, said to his journalists: “We cannot have a program schedule with investigative journalism, we are a public television.”

There is one point that Varshalomidze is keen to return. “The chain is now {since 5 March, editor’s note} under the leadership of Evgeni Tavdgiridze, a former reporter for Radio Liberty- Radio Free Europe.” This appointment is meant to be seen as a pledge to guarantee the freedom of the press.

As to the accusations of co-optation, Varshalomidze states that the majority of the members of his administration are from Ajaria, though the laws of geography are not intangible. “Our Georgian Prime Minister, Zourab Nogaideli, comes from Batumi, so why shouldn’t politicians from Tbilisi take up a post in Batumi?” He maintains.
However, his comments become somewhat soured once you realise that Nogaideli occupies an important position in the Varshalomidze network since they are both cofounders and owners, with Damenia and Kavtaradze, of a consulting company based in Tbilisi, the DVNK.
The problem is that of a governmental system where, under a flashy democratic veneer, clientelism competes with bureaucracy. The theory is there but the practice is lacking.

Drowning in promises

“Our priority is unemployment”, Varshalomidze states. “We must now attract investors and privatise companies. Four or five tourist complexes and hotels have already been created or renovated, thanks to investments from the Kazakhs, Azeris and Turks.”
The other side of the picture is not as pretty. Particularity for the locals. Property inflation has been dramatic. In 2004, 6,000 dollars was enough to get a medium size flat in Batumi. Today it would cost 20,000 dollars. The local politicians boast about this, civil society less so. Within this context, how can the Ajarians not say that they are fed up with this new ‘democracy’?”

However, it is difficult to revolutionise the local economic scene in just a year in office. Apathy has already been shaken by job creation initiatives. “For 2005, the opening of a textile factory and a tea-producing company will create 500 job openings in the area”, our speaker persistently reiterates. From now until the end of 2006, the Varshalomidze government hopes to create 10,000 jobs. In particular, the construction of a new refinery is set to employ 700 locals on site, maybe triple that with subcontracting.

“Ajaria already attracts small regional investors. Now it must attract foreign capital. For instance, in our project to develop Batumi airport we are considering two operators - Shalabi which runs Tbilisi airport or TAB, an Istanbul operator.” This is another project which has been planned for 2006.
Amongst plans for the integration of Ajaria into the regional dynamic is the start of a daily flight between Batumi and Baku from 1 July.

Tourism is now more than ever the main area for profitable investments for foreign capital. In spring 2005, the Ajarian politicians spent public money on media campaigns to promote Ajaria in the Ukraine and Russia. Therefore Varshalomidze realises that he must put in a mid-may deadline, which will be needed for the development of a welcome infrastructure, lodging and services. However, Varshalomidze was forced to call a halt to the campaign halfway through May when he realised that the information, accommodation and services infrastructure in his country was not up to scratch. Just being present at international tourist offices in Berlin, Kiev or Moscow is no longer enough.

“Our aim is to create a model in Georgia as far as investment is concerned. Come back in 2007 and you will see the changes.” The Varshalomidze government has been attacking this goal since the middle of 2004. It remains to be seen whether this strategy will be lucrative and whether voters’ needs will be met.