Gulripshi District

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Gulripshi District

| native_name = {{lang|ka|გულრიფშის რაიონი}}
{{lang|ab|Гәылрыҧшь араион}}

| type = District

| image_skyline = {{multiple image

| border = infobox

| perrow = 1/2/2/2/2

| total_width = 250

| image1 = Amtkeli.jpg

| image2 = Dranda cathedral.jpg

| image3 = Кодор 2018-11-01.jpg

| image4 = Babushara 04.JPG

| image5 = Mühle bei Gwandra - panoramio.jpg

| footer = From the top to bottom-right, Lake Amtkeli, Dranda Cathedral, Kodori River, Babushara Beach, Upper Abkhazia}}

| image_alt =

| image_caption =

| image_map = {{Abkhazia district OSM map}}

| map_alt =

| map_caption = Location of Gulripshi district in Abkhazia

| coordinates = {{coord|43.1000|N|41.4170|E|region:GE-AB_type:adm1st_source:wikidata|display=inline,title}}

| coordinates_footnotes =

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_type1 = De Facto state

| subdivision_name = Georgia

| subdivision_name1 = Abkhazia{{Abkhazia-note}}

| established_title =

| established_date =

| seat_type = Capital

| seat = Gulripshi

| government_footnotes =

| leader_party =

| leader_title = Governor

| leader_name = Aslan Baratelia

| unit_pref = Metric

| area_footnotes =

| area_total_km2 = 1835

| area_note =

| elevation_footnotes =

| elevation_m =

| population_footnotes =

| population_total = 18032{{cite web|website=www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru|title=Population of Abkhazia|access-date=2024-12-21|url=https://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/rnabkhazia.html|language=Russian}}

| population_as_of = 2011

| population_density_km2 = auto

| population_demonym =

| population_note =

| timezone1 = MSK

| utc_offset1 = +3

| postal_code_type =

| postal_code =

| area_code_type =

| area_code =

| website =

| footnotes =

}}

Gulripshi District ({{lang-ka|გულრიფშის რაიონი}}, {{langx|ab|Гәылрыҧшь араион}}) is a district of Abkhazia, one of Georgia’s breakaway republics. It corresponds to the eponymous Georgian district. Its capital is Gulripshi, the town by the same name. Until the August 2008 Battle of the Kodori Valley, the north-eastern part of Gulripshi district was part of Upper Abkhazia, the corner of Abkhazia controlled by Georgia until the Battle of the Kodori Valley during the August 2008 South Ossetia War. Upper Abkhazia was home to 1,956 of the district's 19,918 inhabitants, most of whom were ethnic Svans (a subgroup of the Georgian people).[http://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/rnabkhazia.html 2003 (2002) Census results] Most of these fled before the battle and have not yet returned.

Of note is the Dranda Cathedral sitting over a shrine built by Justinian in 551. The medieval principality of Dal-Tsabal was centered in the district. Abkhazia's main airport, Sukhumi Dranda Airport, is also located in Gulripshi district.

Administration

Adgur Kharazia was reappointed as Administration Head on 10 May 2001 following the March 2001 local elections.{{cite news|title=Выпуск № 92|url=http://abkhazia.narod.ru/gb/1579|access-date=24 April 2016|agency=Apsnypress|date=10 May 2001}}

On 18 December 2002, President Ardzinba released Kharazia as Administration Head and appointed him as Minister for Agriculture and Food.{{cite news|script-title=ru:Новые назначения в правительстве Абхазии|url=http://www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/32238/|access-date=18 April 2011|newspaper=Caucasian Knot|language=ru|date=18 December 2002}}

On 16 June 2003, President Ardzinba appointed Tamaz Gogia as Administration Head.{{cite news|title=Выпуск № 121|url=http://apsnypress.narod.ru/2003/06_jun-03/AP06-16-03.htm|access-date=20 January 2012|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=16 June 2003}} In the beginning of 2004, district officials stayed away from work in protest of what they perceived as rudeness from Gogia. In response, Gogia applied for resignation which President Ardzinba granted on 9 February, appointing First Deputy Head Aslan Baratelia as acting Head.{{cite news|last=Kuchuberia|first=Anzhela|title=Президент Абхазии освободил Тамаза Гогия от обязанностей главы администрации Гулрипшского района|url=http://www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/50583/|access-date=20 January 2012|newspaper=Caucasian Knot|date=10 February 2004}}{{cite news|title=Выпуск №28|url=http://www.abkhaziya.org/news_detail.html?nid=2012|access-date=27 April 2016|agency=Apsnypress|date=9 February 2004|archive-date=17 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117070445/http://www.abkhaziya.org/news_detail.html?nid=2012|url-status=dead}}

On 24 March 2005, newly elected President Sergei Bagapsh replaced Administration Head Aslan Baratelia with Mikhail Logua.{{cite news|last=Bagapsh|first=Sergei|author-link=Sergei Bagapsh|title=О главе Администрации Гулрыпшского района|url=http://www.abkhaziagov.org/ru/president/activities/decree/detail.php?ID=1768|access-date=20 January 2012|newspaper=Administration of the President of the Republic of Abkhazia|date=24 March 2005}}{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} In the 2011 Presidential election, Logua successfully ran for Vice President alongside Alexander Ankvab. He was succeeded on 14 December by Timur Eshba, who had previously been Deputy Head.{{cite news|title=Тимур Эшба назначен главой администрации Гульрипшского района|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/4957.html|access-date=30 December 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=15 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120601034005/http://apsnypress.info/news/4957.html|archive-date=1 June 2012|url-status=dead}}

Following the May 2014 Revolution and the election of Raul Khajimba as President, on 23 September 2014 he replaced Eshba with Aslan Baratelia.{{cite news|title=У К А З О главе администрации Гулрыпшского района|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/13342.html|access-date=26 October 2014|agency=Apsnypress|date=23 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141026004904/http://apsnypress.info/news/13342.html|archive-date=26 October 2014|url-status=dead}}

=List of Administration Heads=

class="wikitable" width=75% cellpadding="2"

style="background-color:#E9E9E9; font-weight:bold" align=left

| #

| width=240|Name

| width=200|From

| width=200|Until

| width=160|President

| width=200|Comments

rowspan=2|

|rowspan=2|Adgur Kharazia

|1993

|{{cite web|title=Харазия Адгур Рафетович|url=http://www.parlamentra.org/officials/?ELEMENT_ID=128|publisher=People's Assembly - Parliament of the Republic of Abkhazia|access-date=11 December 2012|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220916/http://www.parlamentra.org/officials/?ELEMENT_ID=128|url-status=dead}}

|26 November 1994

26 November 1994

|18 December 2002

|rowspan=3|Vladislav Ardzinba

|Tamaz Gogia

|16 June 2003

|9 February 2004

|Aslan Baratelia

|9 February 2004

|24 March 2005

|First time

rowspan=2|