In June, the government announced that Abkhazia was already an independent country and would not accept deferred political status within Georgia. In September, as conflicts along the border intensified, President Shevardnadze said he was prepared to give Abkhazia the highest possible status of political autonomy within the federal Georgian state. In December, both sides agreed to a withdrawal of forces in the Gali region, but a political solution remained elusive. They were also barred from local elections in 1998. Freedom of religion is respected for Muslims, but Christian Georgians and Armenians face harassment, intimidation, and persecution.
Freedom of assembly is restricted.
The November 1994 constitution established a presidential-parliamentary system. The 1996 parliamentary elections were officially non-party. Of the 30 deputies elected in the first-round there were 19 Abkhaz, four Russians, three Armenians, two Georgians, one Greek and one Kabardian. Trade union structures are former affiliates of the Georgian Confederation of Trade Unions. The constitution enshrines an independent judiciary, but the judicial system still includes Soviet-era practices.