Georgian legislation does not apply to the territories occupied by Russia. However, the problem for the population of these regions is that even the laws adopted by the occupation regime act selectively. The occupation regime and the elite formed around it enjoy feudal privileges and immunity in the Tskhinvali region and Abkhazia. The unlimited arbitrariness of the ruling groups and the clans close to them deepens the feeling of injustice among the locals.

 

One of such privileged families in the occupied district of Akhalgori uses its closeness to the authorities, apart from power and economic interests, to suppress critical voices. There was a case when the family posted a photo on social networks showing bear hunting together with the de facto president. Bear hunting is prohibited by law in South Ossetia. The Akhalgori population, who have been living under isolation and informal regime after the 2008 war, finds it difficult to protest this situation. Those who dare to criticize are threatened by members of the district's informal ruling family in the name of the de facto president of South Ossetia.

 

Ruling outside law is a common practice for South Ossetia. Even those who are entrusted with the enforcement of laws are unable to do so even when there is the relevant desire and will. On October 3, 2023, Adgur Agrba, de facto prosecutor general of Abkhazia, paid an "official visit" to Tskhinvali. The de-facto president of South Ossetia, Alan Gagloev, issued an order to award Adgur Agrba the Order of Friendship. The order was presented to the Abkhaz guest by the head of the de facto authorities, Konstantine Jusoev, at the ceremony dedicated to the 100^th anniversary of the prosecutor's office of South Ossetia. Later that evening, the ceremony had an unpleasant continuation. Members of the Abkhaz delegation were allegedly stopped by the local police for drunk driving. The guests protested the request of the police officers. The de facto prosecutor general of Abkhazia and his companions demanded an apology from the police officers and threatened them. Later, the angry guest threw the Order of Friendship in the yard of the host colleague's house. 

 

Such a system of governance, built on informal and particularistic relations, turns the occupied territories into a feudal system, where rulers behave like feudal lords - they can break the laws that are mandatory for the rest of the population of the region, live outside the law, and interact with each other according to feudal rules. In a small society like South Ossetia, where information spreads quickly, this style of governance runs counter to the local traditions of solidarity and equality, causing justifiable anger and protest among the population.