Istanbul – Just as Abkhazia has called attention unto itself in the wake of Kosovo’s western-aided unilateral declaration of independence, the TRT, the state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation, opted not to put on air a special television program of its own, called ‘Between the Borders,’ already after it was videotaped.
The last episode of ‘Between the Borders’ was taken off the air after the TRT officials said that the Turkish Foreign Ministry would be consulted in the first place.
The program was expected to air on Tuesday night at 11 p.m. However, it was said in a statement released earlier today from the TRT that it might never be aired at all, though the Caucasian Diaspora was staunchly waiting to see it for days.
Earlier televised announcements said that the last episode of the ‘Between the Borders’ would show interviews of the journalist Banu Avar with President Sergei Bagapsh and Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba of Abkhazia. Ms. Avar went to Sukhum, capital of Abkhazia, and had her interviews with Mr. Bagapsh and Mr. Shamba videotaped for airing.
The TRT has provoked immediate reaction from the Caucasian diaspora. Irfan Argun, Chair of the Committee of the Caucasian-Abkhazian Solidarity, was the first to voice a formal response, since he was early notified about the program being taken off from the air. Mr. Argun protested at the prohibitive as well as censorial attitude by the TRT administration towards Abkhazia, a country which receives international media coverage. Mr. Argun was also critical that the Turkish Foreign Ministry had intervened and caused Mr. Bagapsh to cancel his plans to visit Turkey late in 2007: "This [the TRT decision not to put on air the program] is only a different manifestation of Turkey’s official policies to prioritize Georgia while ignoring Abkhazia. To us, this is the silencing of not only a respectable television program but also of Abkhazia." Mr. Argun stressed that it was the most natural right the Turkish public in general and the Turkish people of Caucasian origin in particular owned to know objectively about Abkhazia. "Objective broadcasting will be sufficient to unearth the truth about Abkhazia," said Mr. Argun. "In our opinion, this program was taken off the air because it was objective about Abkhazia. The TRT decision is against us; it is meant to ignore and silence us."
The following is the English translation for what appeared on the official TRT web site as introductory notes by Ms. Avar about her program: "There is a place called Abkhazia at the joint of the Black Sea with the Caucasus. It is not recognized by any countries. In there lives one of the most warrior Caucasian tribes… The Abkhazians… Ms. Avar talks in Sukhum to President Bagapsh and Foreign Minister Shamba about what the day has brought about. It displays the views of intellectuals, young people and those who moved from Turkey to settle in Sukhum. ‘Between the Borders’ mirrors the items that has gone up the agenda after Kosovo declared its independence. ‘Between the Borders’ captures the latest news from Abkhazia, which first joined the USSR while the Union was being established, which was later in 1931 given by Stalin over to Georgia, which rose in rebellion when the USSR was dissolved against the Georgian military. The government officials of Abkhazia maintain that Abkhazia holds on to more valid causes than Kosovo does for independence. The European Union (EU), the United Nations (UN) and similar international organizations recognize Abkhazia for the past 15 years to be part of Georgia." (Agency Caucasus)
