Chiatura Manganese Mines

34 Posts

•

0 Followers

Podcast | Shukruti’s last stand against Georgian Manganese

by OC Media

•2 min read

The residents of Shukruti, a village in Georgia’s western Chiatura region, have been protesting mining under their village carried out by Georgian Manganese for years. In September, they relocated their protest to Georgia’s Parliament in Tbilisi, demanding that the government intervene in their dispute with the mining company. Those protesting around the clock in front of parliament are constantly exposed to the elements as the weather grows colder, with at least six of th

Shukruti protesters sleeping under rain outside the parliament. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Dying on the steps of parliament — Georgia’s Shukrutians make last bid for their homes

by Volodymyr Soboliev

•7 min read

After over a month on hunger strike, mostly on the steps of Georgia’s parliament, residents of the village of Shukruti are facing declining health and plummeting temperatures, with little hope of saving their village from destruction. ‘I don’t think I’ll witness my child growing up. I don’t have much energy left in me, maybe a few days? I don’t know’, says Giorgi Bitsadze, 33. Bitsadze has always been the funny one, cracking endless jokes to friends, family, and anyone he happens to meet.

Protest of Shukruti residents outside the parliament. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Georgian Manganese–linked company attacks critics and media covering Shukruti hunger strike

by OC Media

•6 min read

A company that has been linked to mining firm Georgian Manganese has claimed that people on hunger strike over the destruction of their homes are being ‘fully managed’ by NGOs and media organisations, including OC Media. Chiatura Management Company stated on Thursday that they had ‘reasonable suspicions’ that the demonstrators were ‘backed by non-governmental organisations that are also directly connected to radical political parties, which in turn use the protests for their own narrow party i

Residents of Shukruti hold banners during the protest in front of the Georgian parliament on 11 September. Photo: Tata Shoshiashvili/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Mining company files 30 new lawsuits against Shukruti residents

by OC Media

•3 min read

Manganese mining company Magharoeli LLC has filed lawsuits against 30 residents in the village of Shukruti, demanding that the residents pay a total of ₾5.5 million ($2.1 million), as well as restricting their property rights. The Shukruti residents’ lawyer, Lado Kutateladze, told OC Media that they only found out about the lawsuits on Monday, adding that this latest series of cases aimed to pressure Shukruti residents to end their protest against mining operations under their village.

Residents of Shukruti hold a banner saying ‘To save village Shukruti’. Photo: Tata Shoshiashvili/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Shukruti residents arrive in Tbilisi to continue protest against manganese mining

by OC Media

•3 min read

Demonstrators from Shukruti, who have been protesting for almost six months to raise awareness of the damage caused by manganese mining under their village, have moved their protest to Tbilisi. Police did not allow them to set up their tent in front of the parliament building. On Wednesday evening, several dozen demonstrators arrived in Tbilisi from the village of Shukruti, west Georgia. They asked the state to pay attention to their problems and their protest. Residents of Shukruti have bee

Jumber Tsutskiridze, Giorgi Bitsadze and Amiran Shekiladze sewed their mouths on Sunday. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Three in Shukruti sew lips shut in protest against manganese mining

by Volodymyr Soboliev

•4 min read

On Sunday, three protesters from the village of Shukruti sewed their lips shut in an attempt to attract attention to their protest against the damage manganese mining is causing to their homes. This latest action follows more than five months of continuous protest by local residents. Sunday morning was gloomy in the protest tent. People had been gathering since the early hours, knowing that some of the protesters had made the decision to take the extreme measure of sewing their lips shut. W

Nargiza Kapanadze at the entrance to her storage room, which has visible cracks outside and inside. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

Chiatura Manganese Mines

Shukruti residents banned from protesting outside manganese mines

by Volodymyr Soboliev

•3 min read

Anti-mining protesters in the western Georgian town of Shukruti have vowed to march to the hometown of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, after a court banned them from blocking mine access. The Sachkhere District Court banned residents of Shukruti, near Chiatura, from protesting outside a series of manganese mines. Protesters have spent the last five months blocking access to the mines to demand compensation for the damage, and in some cases, complete collaps