Georgian Cyber Wars: Blog Disappears After Charges Against Russia
User Cyhymu (Georgiy from Georgia) dropped out again from my friends list at Livejournal.com. It’s not surprising to me. His blog “Remembrance on Suhumy, War and Pain” had been blocked several times last year. Each time he restores it from scratch and re-uploads full archive on first military conflict in his native town Sukhumy, which is located in Abkhazia.
The archive includes full description of his family escape from first post-Soviet Abkhazia war and unique photos of bloody murders, dead bodies and devastation from the time when we others got the information only from pro-Russian state TV, as internet in ex-USSR didn’t exist yet – in 1992-1993. People trust him, like they trust other citizen journalists, because it’s not a paid job, it’s just private area of the web with a story from the ground, detailed and sincere.
August 2008, being already adult, exiled university professor in Tbilisi and happy father of two, Georgiy followed Russia-Georgia war as fully equipped blogger – with cameras, videos, RSS-news, videos, paid and secure account on host page fully open to other bloggers in his native Georgia and around the world. But then – at the end of October 2008 whole sites Livejournal and Wordpress reported severe problems due to the DDos attacks on his personal blogs. It was first case when such attack had been organized just against one personal page. The administration of both sites had to block his blog. As response Georgiy created 4 “mirror” blogs at different pages. Couple days ago I finally found him and other Georgian bloggers at Twitter and then -- his additional blog on LJ. “We should be ready for another war in Georgia, they explained, Just in case. We are”.
It’s not just pure speculation. Chronicles of War to be Prepared – such topic posted on his page another LJ user Aillarionov -- Andrei Illarionov, former economic adviser for highest Russian officials, including president Putin, up to 2005, when he declared that Russia “is no longer democratic country” and had to resign finally as he couldn’t more influence Kremlin and was completely disagree with Russia energy policy. Currently Illarionov works as analyst for Washington based libertarian think tank Cato institute and actively uses LJ to promote his ideas.
He collected several links from news agency reports and on-field bloggers, proving growing tension and possibility of one more Georgia-Russia military conflict May or summer 2009. Recently Illarionov complained about some problems with access to his site, but so far it’s open to visitors.
Illarionov believes that the 2008 war in the region was premeditated by the Russian leadership which had introduced its military into South Ossetia and escalated the situation to provoke the Georgian side. He thoroughly keeps proofs. Among other there are links and texts published and then deleted from other sites, as if it’s never happened….
Such, as famous interview of Russian captain Sidristy to “Krasnaya zvezda” (Red star, official media of Russian Defence Ministry”). From his explanation arose conclusion that his regiment moved to Ossetia 7 August 2008 even before the Georgian side started any action in Tshinval. The interview had been posted on Red Star site, quoted in numerous media and blogs. But then it had been corrected and finally deleted. Sidristy himself, injured during the war, wasn’t available to comments anymore.
Another sample: military correspondent Vadim Rechkalov (blogger voinodel) posted on his personal page exclusive photos of Russian truck mounted multiple rocket launcher BM-21 GRAD, used 8-9 August 2008 against Tshinval. Author provided short interview with GRAD soldier as well. The post was deleted later, with no explanation, but is still “alive” on many pages in blogospere, including Illarionov page.
Bloggers urge each other to keep multiple copies of such proofs. “We have to prevent disappearing of such essential information in black holes of internet”, they said. Actually it means they just want to save history “as it really was” and are ready to use all modern communication technologies, developing now quicker than any government can counteract.
ps I upload photos from voinodel page, as I think it's essential evidence from the 2008 Russia-Georgia war. By Wikipedia, BM-21 Grad is a Soviet truck-mounted 122-mm multiple rocket launcher, developed in the early 1960s. In the West, the system was initially known as M1964. Several other countries have copied it or developed similar systems.
Tags: Georgia , South Ossetia , War
