Discussions about the isolation of the Gali district mostly concern the strict regulations on the Enguri crossing point, the purpose of which is to isolate citizens remaining beyond the Enguri River from the rest of the territory of Georgia and state space, reads the report of Democratic Research Institute.

“This crossing point on the Enguri dividing line is some kind of mechanism for forming awareness; on the one hand, it closes Abkhazia to the rest of Georgia, and on the other hand, it strengthens the sense of distance, difficult accessibility of the rest of Georgia among the population of Abkhazia. As a result, the difficulty of crossing the "border", push Georgians living in the Gali district to “violate” procedures and restrictions, sometimes at the risk of their own life.

According to the information available to the DRI, the so-called border, apart from the function of political-psychological isolation from the rest of Georgia, performs an important economic function for persons involved in its control. Despite restrictions, the bridge can be crossed in exchange for a bribe; it is possible to transport any cargo, including prohibited goods, for 2000-3000 Russian rubles (equivalent to 88-132 GEL) and the age-related restriction on movement is also often ignored (under current regulations, people aged 17-40 years are prohibited from crossing the border). This situation further deepens the economic misery of the locals and highlights the inequality of people living in the Gali district in relation to Abkhaz officials, who make money by these “regulations” - corruption.

According to the information available to the DRI, the existing age limit was increased in early June. Earlier movement on the Enguri Bridge was prohibited for persons aged 17-40 years, while now the upper limit has been increased to 59, which sharply increases the number of potential bribe-givers. Obviously, exactly this was the purpose of the change and not the security of the so-called border.

As DRI has been informed, a resident of Gali secretly took photos of bribe-taking on the so-called border and spread photos through the Internet. The exposure of this reality was followed by a protest rally of local citizens. As a result of the protest, the administration of the Gali district promised locals that the restrictions would be lifted. However, at present, the only change is that the “border guards” take 2,000 Russian rubles instead of 3,000.

This situation and recent developments in the Gali region show that corruption on the Enguri Bridge further underscores ethnic segregation and incitement to discrimination on the above grounds, which brings monetary dividends to the ruling groups of Abkhazia’s de facto law enforcement agencies. The above makes us think that despite the demand of the Gali population and a number of tragic incidents that occurred along the dividing line due to the avoidance of corruption, the so-called border regime is unlikely to change. The above-mentioned corruption scheme remains a lucrative business for the de facto authorities and law enforcement officials of Abkhazia. The Georgian authorities and the international community must take into account that the effects of these “regulations” exacerbate the already dire socio-economic situation of the Gali population, which sometimes puts their health and lives at risk”, - reads the report.