March 4 - It is with great sadness that news has reached us of the
loss of a great leader, Vladislav Ardzinba, the first leader of
Abkhazia.
After a long struggle with cancer, Vladislav Ardzinba died at 64
years of age. On behalf of all UNPO Members, UNPO General Secretary
Marino Busdachin expresses his deepest condolences to the families,
relatives and colleagues of Vladislav Ardzinba.
|
|
|
Below follows an obituary of Vladislav Ardzinba (14 May 1945 – 4 March 2010)
Vladislav Ardzinba was an Abkhaz politician and the first president of Republic of Abkhazia.
Born
in the village of Lower Eshera in the Sukhum District, he graduated
from the Sukhum Pedagogical Institute’s Historical Department and
received a doctorate degree at Tbilisi State University. In 1987, after
18 years of working experience in Moscow, he returned to Sukhum as
Director of the Abkhazian Institute of Language, Literature and
History. Furthermore, he was also elected Deputy to the Supreme Soviet
of the Soviet Union.
On December 4th, 1990, Vladislav
Ardzinba was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Abkhazia. He was
elected president by the Abkhazian parliament in 1994 and won the first
direct polls on October 3rd, 1999, where he was re-elected as the
president of Abkhazia. Under his leadership, Abkhazia tried to
strengthen the economy, create links with the international community
and promote the rightful self-determination of the people of Abkhazia.
In 2003 his health seriously deteriorated and as a consequence was
forced to resign the presidency of Abkhazia in 2004.
Vladislav Ardzinba dedicated his life
to the struggle of Abkhazia for self-determination and freedom and
passed away on Thursday, 4th March 2010 after a longstanding battle
with cancer in Moscow’s Central Clinical Hospital.
Source: UNPO |