Georgians lay claim to 'first Europeans' c/o Independent Online SA

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Georgians lay claim to 'first Europeans'

Dmanisi, Georgia - Back in 1991, when archaeologists first unearthed a human jaw bone in these rolling hills, few in the outside world had even heard of tiny Georgia.

The idea that an ex-Soviet republic collapsing in civil war and poverty could be an integral part of the West was laughable.

Then scientists determined the jawbone and dozens of other fragments to be at least 1.7 million years old - the earliest human remains discovered outside Africa and therefore, logically, the ancestors of all Europe and Asia.

"It was a sensation," said Nana Rezesidze, an archaeologist from Georgia's State Museum, at the forested dig site, located on a hillside overlooking a grey-blue mountain river.

"The whole world discovered the existence of Georgia through the fact that the first European had come from here."

This claim to be at the origin of human life in Europe strikes a chord as Georgians vote in a snap presidential election this Saturday.

Despite political unrest, this ancient country's five million people are largely united in wanting to slip Russia's grip and win a place in the West.

Mikheil Saakashvili, the multilingual president fighting for re-election after an autumn of police crackdowns and allegations of coup plots, has done more than anyone to champion the cause.

He wants EU and Nato membership, flies the blue European flag alongside Georgia's banner, and describes painful Russian economic sanctions as a welcome stimulus to find new markets.

A cocky, sometimes rather surreal advertising campaign run on CNN and in major news magazines portrays the still deeply impoverished country as more Western than the West.

Listed on the www.investingeorgia.org site, the ads boast Georgia has stronger economic growth than France, an easier business climate than Germany, better location than Holland, and more relaxed employment laws than Australia.

Although ordinary Georgians are wary of Saakashvili's grandstanding, they do look increasingly to Europe, not Russia for leadership.

The adjective "Evro," or European," equates quality - even describing higher-grade "evro diesel" at the garage - while English is rapidly eating into Russia's status as the second language.

Giorgi Shengelaia, a film director, said pro-Western aspirations run deeper than mere politics.

"Membership in the European Union would mean for Georgians recognition of their European identity. Georgians feel discriminated against without this," he said. "The aspiration to join the European Union has mostly cultural, not political or economic motives."

Located on the eastern fringe of the Black Sea, Georgia adopted Christianity as state religion early in the 4th Century - well ahead of most of Europe or Russia - while hundreds of medieval castles and stone churches dot the countryside.

Archaeologists go back much further, naming Georgia as the probable origin of wine making, while Greek myths mention the Black Sea coast as the location of the Golden Fleece, and the Caucasus mountains as Prometheus' place of enchainment.

Political analyst Giorgi Margvelashvili said that after centuries of domination by powerful neighbours Persia, Russia and Turkey, Georgians see an added attraction in partnering with western Europe.

"To keep your identity in a globalised world you need to keep your allies at a slight distance," Margelashvili said.

"We are comfortable with Europe because it's over there, whereas Russia always threatens our statehood. If Europe got too involved here I think there'd be problems."

For now, at least, Georgians are eagerly reclaiming what they believe to be a birthright stretching back nearly two million years.

"People from all over the world should come to see Georgia and the Georgians!" exclaimed professional singer Gocha, at a traditional feast of wine and extravagant local cuisine in Tbilisi this week.

Raising a glass of cloudy, sand-coloured wine, Gocha proposed a toast repeated all across the proud nation: "Victory to Georgia!"



Published on the Web by IOL on 2008-01-03 08:53:59