Shouting “Kill them! Tear them to pieces!” a mob of several thousand mostly young men, but also robed priests and women in headscarves, broke through police lines to attack several dozen gay-rights supporters gathered in Tbilisi's central Freedom Square.
As Kyrgyzstan’s southern capital recovers from the turmoil of ethnic violence and its aftermath, its ancient market has been a touchstone of Osh’s general wellbeing. Gutted by fire and fear in June 2010, it is now thriving again – though without the vigor and seeming prosperity of the days before “the war.” Both ethnic Kyrgyz and Uzbek venders work at the market, but under the surface tensions remain, as deep-rooted problems like poverty, injustice, and poor governance simmer unaddressed.
David Trilling is EurasiaNet's Central Asia editor.
Madonna Naroushvili drives a city bus on one of the busiest streets of Tbilisi. One of the very few female bus drivers in Georgia, Naroushvili says she is usually assigned to the most difficult routes because she is "never too lazy to steer the wheel hard, as opposed to many other drivers."
But the biggest challenge, she says, comes from her passengers. Many of them, after finding out that the bus is driven by a woman, openly express their surprise.
"Some of them cheer me up by saying that it's so great that a woman is at man's job," Naroushvili says. "Some of them are surprised that I can steer the wheel so confidently. Sometimes I get insults too. Regardless the reaction, I learned to stay calm, friendly, and distant at the same time."
Starting from her childhood Naroushvili was passionate about public transportation. Since the age of 22 she worked as a tram conductor, until the dissolution of the city tram system at the end of 1990s. Afterwards she worked as a private taxi driver for a few years before finally switching to a bus.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
Students take a break to discuss words and spellings during the National English Spelling Competition finals held at the National Youth and Children’s Palace on March 30 in Tbilisi.
The competition was the final round of a year-long project to help motivate Georgian children to learn English. Initiated last year by Peace Corps volunteer Adam Malinowski, the spelling bee started with local competitions in more than 126 schools and more than 2,400 students throughout the country. During the final, 34 top spellers from nine regions around Georgia came to Tbilisi to compete for iPads, iPods, free English classes, and other prizes from the US embassy and other sponsors.
Molly Corso is a freelance journalist who also works as editor of Investor.ge, a monthly publication by the American Chamber of Commerce in Georgia.
Father Tigran Mkhitaryan, who hails from the Georgian city of Akhalkalaki, holds a mass baptism for about 40 people on Feb. 12 in the village of Kartsakhi, located a few kilometers away from the Georgian-Turkish border and populated mostly by ethnic Armenians.
Roughly 200 families live in Kartsakhi, where the 18th-Century church lacks its own priest. Therefore residents use any opportunity to attend religious ceremonies during the rare visits by a city priest.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
The Armenians of Akhalkalaki, Georgia, celebrate Trndez, the traditional festival of newlyweds, on February 13. A local priest conducts a religious service to bless the newlyweds and presents each couple with a copy of the Bible. Following sunset, a bonfire is lit and the couples jump over it holding hands.
In Akhalkalaki, where unemployment runs higher than the Georgian national average, winter has been a traditional wedding time following the breakup of the Soviet Union. In spring most of male population leaves Georgia to look for work abroad, mostly in Russia and Armenia, and then returns home in late fall.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
Women dance in downtown Tbilisi as part of the global One Billion Rising event on February 14. Women and men across the world, including Kyrgyzstan, danced to raise awareness of rape and violence against women.
Molly Corso is a freelance journalist who also works as editor of Investor.ge, a monthly publication by the American Chamber of Commerce in Georgia.
Women in Bishkek mark Valentine's Day with a family photograph. Photographers in Kyrgyzstan often erect colorful displays to mark holidays, sometimes with rabbits, doves, or peacocks. For 50 soms (about $1) a photographer will take anyone's photo, then run across the street to a digital studio to make a quick print.
David Trilling is EurasiaNet's Central Asia editor.
