He was in prison under Stalin and Khrushchev, Brezhnev and Gorbachev, Yeltsin and Gamsakhurdia. Having spent almost half of his life in places not so remote, Jaba Ioseliani became an authoritative criminal, political and scientific figure in Georgia. Being a thief in law, nicknamed "Dyuba", he was the de facto ruler of the country from 1991 to 1995.
Childhood and youth of the crime boss, first conclusions
Dzhaba Konstantinovich Ioseliani, whose biography is discussed in this article, was born in 1926 in the Georgian city of Khashuri. The boy's father worked on the railroad, and his mother was a teacher. The childhood of the future crime boss passed in poverty. Orphaned at an early age, he was brought up by the street and earned his living by stealing. Ioseliani received his first term at the age of 16. For theft and robbery, the Molotovsky District Court of Tbilisi sentenced him to 5 years in prison.
In 1948, the guy got an early release. Having moved to the Northern capital, according to a fake certificate (by that time he had not graduated from high school), Jaba entered the Leningrad University. Pushkin at the Faculty of Oriental Studies. With a brilliant intellect, he became one of the best students. The teachers, who did not get tired of praising the mental abilities of their excellent student and activist, were amazed when they suddenly found out that in his free time he trades with illegal acts. In 1951, Dzhaba Konstantinovich was arrested in Leningrad and received 1 year in prison for hooliganism.
The beginning of literary activity
Shortly after the second term, the third one followed. This time, Ioseliani was caught in an armed assault with murder and was sent to jail for 25 years. While in prison, he, unlike his cellmates, who whiled away the time playing cards, took up writing. Jaba's stories were so masterfully written that, despite his being in places not so remote, they began to be published in literary magazines. Ioseliani Dzhaba Konstantinovich himself jokingly called his work during the period of imprisonment “chamber literature”. Prominent cultural figures of the Georgian SSR became interested in the fate of the talented writer-convict. At their request, Ioseliani was released early in 1965.
Ioseliani's life in the 60s - the first half of the 80s
After being released, 38-year-old Jaba decided to start a new life. He received his secondary education at night school, after which he enteredTbilisi Theater Institute, first defended his Ph. D., and then his doctoral dissertation. After becoming a professor, he worked at the theater institute as a teacher. Giving lectures to students, Jaba Ioseliani could not forget about his criminal past. The thief in law was engaged in mediation in the illegal supply of Georgian fruits and vegetables to countless markets of the Soviet Union. For his services, the former prisoner received good money, which allowed him to live for his own pleasure. However, this did not prevent him from expressing dissatisfaction with the share that fell to him for the dirty and risky work he performed. In his opinion, it was "not according to the rules", and their criminal authority tried to strictly adhere to them. Ioseliani was such a colorful and charismatic figure that in the early 70s, the famous Georgian writer Nodar Dumbadze made him the prototype of the hero of his novel "White Flags" Limona Devdariani, who gained the fame of an "honest" thief in law.
Literary creativity
Combining teaching at the theater institute with criminal activity, Ioseliani Jaba Konstantinovich found time for literary activity. He wrote scientific articles, monographs and works of art. The authorship of the thief in law belongs to 6 plays, which were subsequently staged on the stages of Tbilisi theaters. From fiction, his novels "Train No. 113", "Country of Limonia" and "Three Dimensions" gained the greatest popularity. Written in a lively and vivid language, they capture the attention of readers from the firstpages and do not let him go until the very end.
Coming into politics, creation of Mkhedrioni
In the mid-80s, Jaba Ioseliani, whose photo can be seen in the article, was delighted with the news about the beginning of perestroika. Having given up teaching and stopped writing, he began to take an active part in the political life of Georgia. In 1989, he created the nationalist paramilitary formation "Mkhedrioni" ("Horsemen"). Its members called themselves the successors of the medieval partisan detachments fighting against the Turkish and Persian conquerors. They took an oath to protect the Georgian lands and the people living on them. Members of the Mkhedrioni wore sweaters, jeans, jackets and sunglasses, which were not removed even indoors. Each "horseman" had a medallion around his neck with his name and blood type on one side and the image of George the Victorious on the other.
The organization created by Jaba Ioseliani was essentially an illegal criminal group dominated by criminals, drug addicts and street kids. Soon the Mkhedrioni members entered the Georgian Parliament. The grouping of Jaba Konstantinovich took part in most of the armed conflicts taking place on Georgian territory. But the main achievement of the "horsemen" is that they overthrew the regime of Zviad Gamsakhurdia and helped Eduard Shevardnadze come to power.
Attempt to seize power
In 1990, multi-party elections were held in Georgia, in which the communistsgot defeated. The Supreme Council of the republic was headed by Zviad Gamsakhurdia, to whom Ioseliani had a personal dislike. The thief in law called him a "fascist" and accused him of violating human rights and freedoms. In early 1991, Dzhaba Konstantinovich tried to bring Mkhedrioni fighters into Tbilisi, for which he was captured by the troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and thrown into jail.
In the spring of the same year, Georgia receives the status of an independent republic, and Gamsakhurdia becomes its president. Jaba Ioseliani followed all these events from prison. The thief, accustomed to living by the rules, was powerless during this period of time and could not prevent his opponent from coming to power.
Military coup
The policy pursued by Gamsakhurdia was ill-conceived and inconsistent, because of which he quickly lost the support of society. In August 1991, after an anti-government coup in Moscow, he, on the instructions of the State Emergency Committee, disbanded the National Guard, which made an unforgivable mistake for himself. The guards, refusing to join the ranks of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, unite with the Mkhedrioni and in December 1991 carry out a coup d'état, overthrowing Gamsakhurdia and releasing Ioseliani from prison. Once free, Jaba Konstantinovich, together with the commander of the guards, Tengiz Kitovani, creates the Military Council, which is subsequently transformed into the State Council. However, the new government did not enjoy the support of the people, and then Ioseliani invited Eduard Shevardnadze to the post of chairman of the newly created State Council. According to the crime boss, he was the mostsuitable candidate to lead the country.
Ioseliani in the first half of the 90s
From the moment Shevardnadze came to power and until 1995, Jaba Ioseliani was the de facto ruler of Georgia. His biography shows that throughout this period he influenced politics in the country, relying on the support of the paramilitary group he created. Although Ioseliani himself brought Shevardnadze to power and helped him become president, he was not pleased with his actions as head of state. Tensions between politicians led to the fact that in August 1995 the Mkhedrioni fighters and their leader were accused of organizing an assassination attempt on Eduard Shevardnadze. As a result of this, Dzhaba Konstantinovich was arrested and, after a long trial, was sentenced to eleven years in prison. The group he created was outlawed.
Recent years
In 2001, Eduard Shevardnadze unexpectedly pardoned his former colleague. After being released, 75-year-old Ioseliani decided to go back into politics. He ran for deputies in the ongoing by-elections to the Georgian parliament, but suffered a crushing defeat. Not wanting to sit idle, Jaba Konstantinovich returned to literary activity. Shortly before his death, he visited Moscow with a presentation of his books translated into Russian. The thief in law died on March 4, 2003 from a stroke. He was buried in Tbilisi on the territory of the Didube pantheon of famouspeople of Georgia.
