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Georgia Crime
In the first postcommunist years, levels of crime and civil
unrest in Georgia were quite high because of the proximity of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, refugee movement and terrorism
resulting from the Abkhazian conflict within Georgia, the gap
between official wages and living standards, and the government's
lack of police authority in many areas of the country. Crime
statistics were unreliable, however, because the extent of law
enforcement and reporting varied during 1993. Reported crimes
dropped from 1,982 in May to 1,260 in July. In late 1993,
however, numerous automobile thefts and kidnappings occurred on
Georgian highways, and citizen insecurity prompted the
proliferation of private detective agencies.
The natural gas pipeline to Armenia was a frequent target of
terrorist bombs in 1993, and several government figures
apparently were the targets of unsuccessful bomb attacks. The
Mkhedrioni, who often were involved in criminal activity, usually
escaped police control because the minister of internal affairs
was a Mkhedrioni member. In September, Shevardnadze took personal
control of the ministry to bolster police authority.
Data as of March 1994
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