Borderization in Georgia: Sovereignty Materialized

This paper shall examine the process of borderization that has been proclaimed as occurring along theGeorgian-South Ossetian boundary. This boundary is one that remains largely unrecognized, as the claims of theGeorgian state to sovereignty over South Ossetia are accepted by the majority of the international community.The crucial exception to this is Russia, under whose aegis this process of borderization is occurring. The result isthe creation of a physical barrier around the territory of South Ossetia, one that seeks to materialize what waspreviously an administrative fiction on the ground, halting the movement of people and goods across this borderand dividing people from their livelihoods. The paper shall consider what meaning this fencing has within thecontext of Georgia's borders, and reflect upon the larger lessons that can be drawn for the concept of sovereigntyand the status of borders in the contemporary world.