"evropuli qartia saqarTvelo "European Charter for Regional or ...

Preface
More than a century Russian empire aspires to break up the
Georgian nation (with the method: "divide and rule") for the purpose
of the country’s complete annexation to Russia. At the same time
scientific circles loyal to the Russian empire spread politicized qualifications
and declare that Megrelians, Svans, Acharans, Kakhetians,
Meskhs… are not Georgians and that the only "Georgians" are Kartlians
who oppress others and this mistreatment is expressed in the
fact that the language of Kartlians is dominated over the "languages"
of other "ethnic groups", e.g. Acharans’, Megrelians’, Svans’, Laz’,
Meskh’s,….However, the reality is that the Georgian language is common
creation of all Georgians (Megrelians, Svans, Acharans, Meskhs,
Laz, Ingilos, Imeretians, Rachans, Khevsurians, Mokhevians, Imerkhevians,
Livanians….) and their historical mother tongue.
Today, those who wish to disintegrate Georgia seek to present a
significant part of Georgians (Megrelians, Svans, Laz) as ethnic minorities
of the country by way of misinterpreting the essence of "European
Charter for Regional or Minority Languages". And with this "legalize"
linguistic or ethnic crumbling of the country.
Unfortunately, until the recent times Georgian scholars had not
provided due academic response to the "scientific" diversions politicized
by the empire. To this end the present book -"European Charter
for Regional or Minority Languages and Georgia (Sakartvelo)" - of professor
T. Putkaradze, professor E. Dadiani, and professor R. Sherozia
presents rare exception, in which the authors give academic answers
to quite a few essential questions with scientific honesty.
Rezo Cheishvili
Chairman of the Literary Foundation of Georgian Writers
Laureate of the Shota Rustaveli Prize
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