The former Soviet republic of Georgia has had a turbulent time since achieving independence as a fully fledged European country. Gone are the drab days of communism, but in place instead is a tense situation between Russia, Georgia and South Ossetia.
Keeping a close eye on peacekeeping activities is the Organisation For Security and Co-Operation In Europe (OSCE) the world’s largest regional security organisation. The OSCE Mission To Georgia is doing a superb job – but they are more aware than most that one wrong word to a journalist could cause untold damage.
So Media Mentor dispatched their own Mission to the Georgian capital Tbilisi. Reporter Paul Murricane and Cameraman/Editor Simon Morton produced on-the-spot packaged reports, putting senior officials on the spot in the thick of simulated border checkpoint clashes and fatal road incidents. The four-day trip was so successful that the OSCE have asked Media Mentor back – this time to carry out training in the Conflict Zone! We’re still deciding who should go on that one… As we left Georgia there was one sign that the old Eastern Bloc days are gone forever.
The highway out to the spanking new airport – easily able to rival anything in the UK for modern luxury – has been renamed George W Bush Boulevard. And one of the last sights visitors see is the leader of the Free World smiling out from a giant billboard. Apparently there is no irony intended.
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