Lawmakers in Georgia’s separatist region of Abkhazia reject encouraging Russian investment

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Lawmakers in Georgia’s breakaway province of Abkhazia on Tuesday rejected a bill offering privileges to Russian investors that sparked days of unrest and forced the regional leader to step down.

Demonstrators in the Moscow-backed separatist region had stormed government buildings to protest the new bill allowing Russian investors to buy property in the Black Sea province, forcing the resignation of Aslan Bzhania, the region’s self-styled president.

Bzhania agreed to step down as part of a deal to end the unrest, leaving his vice president, Badra Gunba, as the region’s acting leader pending a presidential election set for February.

Abkhazia broke away from Georgia after a separatist war in the early 1990s, and Moscow recognized the independence of it and another separatist province, South Ossetia, after a brief Russia-Georgia war in 2008. Both separatist regions have relied on Moscow’s subsidies and hosted Russian troops, but many Abkhazians have been reluctant to allow Russian investors to get broader access to the region’s assets.

Abkhazia’s mountains and Black Sea beaches make it a popular destination for Russian tourists, and the demand for holiday homes has been strong.

“While making this decision, we mostly thought about our citizens,” said Daut Khutaba, a lawmaker who backed the bill, according to Apsnypress agency.

Speaking in Moscow, Konstantin Zatulin, a member of the lower house of Russian parliament, said the decision by Abkhazia’s legislature will lead to a cooling of relations with Russia.