Georgian Battleground Moving to Strasbourg

The armed conflict between Georgia and Russia concerning the region of South Ossetia might have been relatively short for a war, the effects of this violence are still being felt. Now, the battleground seems to be increasingly shifting to the courtroom. Georgia already filed an inter-state application against Russia with the European Court of Human Rights and the two states also find themselves facing each other at the International Court of Justice. This is not all, however. Today the European Court announced in a press release that it is being flooded by applications from South Ossetians concerning the August events. As of this week, more than 2,700 individual complaints have already been received. Many concern damages to personal health and property. As the Court’s press release dryly notes – maybe in an effort to stem the tide somewhat – this has “has increased the already considerable workload”. To my mind, it is not clear to what extent the large number of applications are part of an orchestrated effort, but it will certainly only compound the Court’s problems…