Didn't believe in "Dream": Georgian authorities refused to cooperate with radical opposition
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- Didn't believe in "Dream": Georgian authorities refused to cooperate with radical opposition
The Georgian Dream rules out cooperation with the opposition in case of its radical actions. The country held its first parliamentary session after the elections, and the ruling party confirmed to Izvestia its course toward rapprochement with the European Union. Nevertheless, they did not rule out further dialog with Moscow. On the eve of the session, the opposition began to gather in front of the parliament building, intending to block the work of the legislative body. Experts believe that the West is directly involved in the organization of long rallies in the republic. At the same time, there is no danger for Russian citizens in the country, Izvestia was informed by the Russian interests section of the Swiss Embassy in Georgia.
Future course of the Georgian Dream
On November 25, the new Georgian parliament began its work. Elections in the country were held a month ago and were won by the ruling Georgian Dream. Since then, the opposition, which favors a sharp rapprochement with the West, has been continuously organizing protests. On November 24, another march began in the center of Tbilisi and ended with a rally in front of the parliament building. The protesters spent the whole night there, declaring their intentions to disrupt the first session of the supreme legislative body. As a result, a yellow security level was introduced in the Georgian Parliament.
According to the law, the first session of the Parliament is convened and opened by the President, but November 25 was the first time in history when the head of state did not appoint it. However, this was expected, as Salome Zurabishvili is considered the leader of the opposition. Immediately after the parliamentary elections she declared that she would not recognize them. In November she appealed to the Constitutional Court with a request to review the results of the voting. Due to the absence of the President, the session was opened by the oldest MP Lado Kakhadze. For the first time since the collapse of the USSR, only one party, Georgian Dream, will be represented in the Georgian parliament. Although Dream politicians are open to dialog with opposition partners, the ruling party rules out cooperation with radicals.
- A lot depends on the opposition. If they are radical, we will not cooperate with them. We are still waiting for their decision. We don't need such a radical opposition because it is not an opposition, it is radicals," Georgian Dream MP Shota Khabareli told Izvestia. - But if the opposition is constructive, it is important for us. Now everything depends on them, on how they will behave. If they go to do something good for the state, of course we will consider it, but they do not want to. They are now going against their country.
Shota Khabareli emphasized that the main thing is that the protests should be held without breaking the law.
- Everyone can express their opinion, Georgia is a democratic state, so let them express their opinion, but within the framework of the law, - he said.
It should be noted that the protests were launched by the President of Georgia, who is known for her pro-Western orientation. It was Salome Zurabishvili who a few days after the parliamentary elections called on the population to take to the streets. On October 28, about 15 thousand people gathered in the city center. However, the rally lasted a few hours. After that, marches and protests gathered on the streets of the Georgian capital for a month, but they were mostly few in number.
Another scandal occurred on November 16, when the country's CEC met for a session. Then an opposition member of the election commission David Kirtadze poured black paint on the head of the CEC Giorgi Kalandarishvili. The session was interrupted, but later resumed. As a result, the CEC announced the final results of the parliamentary elections, in which Georgian Dream won 54% of the vote. Four opposition forces also passed the five-percent threshold, but none of them gained much more than 10%. Thus, "Dream" received 89 mandates out of 150, i.e. an absolute majority. After that, on November 17, the opposition held another protest action. The protesters occupied the square near Tbilisi State University for about a day. Activists set up about 20 tents near it. Organizers distributed tea, coffee, hot food and blankets to supporters.
Nevertheless, the current authorities will sooner or later have to establish a dialog with the opposition, Mamuka Pipia, international secretary of the Solidarity for Peace party, told Izvestia. Thus, some of the opposition will have to be brought into the parliament.
Should we expect long protests in Georgia?
Opposition parties in Georgia did not recognize the results of the October 26 elections. After the preliminary results of the vote were summarized, the "Coalition for Change" announced that it would not enter the parliament, giving up its mandates. "Strong Georgia" and "Coalition for Change" announced their intention to boycott its work. The same was stated by the Unity-National Movement party, which was created on the basis of former President Mikheil Saakashvili's United National Movement party.
Also the opposition and the President of the Republic Salome Zurabishvili repeatedly emphasized that the elections were rigged. The Prosecutor's Office of the Republic has launched an investigation into these allegations. But it is noteworthy that the majority of oppositionists, despite their statements, refused to cooperate with the agency. Zurabishvili said that the country is "ruled" by the Russian government. The Kremlin strongly rejected the Georgian president's accusations.
In general, the opposition accuses Georgian Dream of cooling relations with the West, as well as its allegedly pro-Russian course. The ruling party initiated the adoption of the law "On Transparency of Foreign Influence". Also with the help of the Dream, the law banning LGBT propaganda (the movement is recognized as extremist in Russia) was approved in the republic. After that, the EU announced the suspension of the process of integration of this country into the union at the opening stage of accession talks.
The ruling party explained its actions by the fact that after the start of the Russian SWO in Ukraine, Western forces began to call for opening a second front in the country to confront Russia and impose sanctions against Moscow. At the same time, Moscow remains Tbilisi's most important trade and economic partner, so such a step would lead to dire consequences for Georgia. The party also emphasized that if it stays in power, peace is guaranteed in the country, while if the opposition comes in, it is likely to be dragged into war.
The foreign policy course of the ruling party remains the same, Shota Khabareli added: Georgia intends to continue moving towards European integration and rapprochement with the EU.
- We will see how it will be with Moscow. It depends on them and on us. But this is the future, I cannot say in advance how relations with Russia will be conducted. But you can't rule out anything," he said when asked how the party is in the mood to further develop contacts with Moscow and whether they rule out further dialog.
Moscow is monitoring the domestic political situation in Georgia. Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it expects stabilization of the situation and normalization of bilateral relations.
- We are far from indifferent to what is happening near our borders, and we do not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, unlike Westerners, and we respect the sovereign will of the Georgian people. We count on the stable development of this Transcaucasian republic and further normalization of bilateral relations," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on October 30.
The Russian interests section at the Swiss Embassy in Georgia notes that at the moment the situation in the country remains calm and nothing threatens the safety of Russians.
- Nevertheless, we recommend all our citizens staying on the territory of Georgia, if possible, to refrain from visiting places of mass gathering of people, places of demonstrations and protests," the diplomatic mission told Izvestia.
As of the evening of November 25, there were no appeals to the section of Russian citizens in connection with any mass political actions. "We also have no information about any incidents related to the violation of the security of Russian citizens," the diplomats stressed.
By the way, the situation after the elections in the republic was also fueled by the West. OSCE observers said that the voting was generally well organized, but they noted an allegedly tense and pressurized atmosphere before election day, as well as several cases of intimidation and procedural inconsistencies during the voting day itself.
Hours after the observers spoke, Brussels and Washington called for investigations into voting irregularities. Individual politicians also made unfriendly statements. Canada's Foreign Ministry, for example, promised to reassess bilateral relations with Georgia. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda stated that he now does not believe in Tbilisi's European future. Polish President Andrzej Duda said that of course there was no evidence of election fraud, but the country's Foreign Ministry still said that "what happened" distances Georgia from the EU and NATO. And in Sweden, they announced that they were suspending all kinds of cooperation with Tbilisi.
- The West is directly involved, their politicians are speaking at rallies, calling for people to come out," Mamuka Pipia, the international secretary of the Solidarity for Peace party, tells Izvestia. - This is direct interference in internal political processes. The West will try to organize Maidanization, they are professional revolutionaries and know how to do it. We had transparent elections, smart ballot boxes were organized, which were initially recognized in the West as well. But a day after the results were announced, they began to say that the elections had been rigged. The West will try to promote the protests more and more subtly. But it has no authority now, and the authorities are acting softly and consistently.
Nevertheless, some number of people will still take to the streets. Protests may be prolonged, but few in number. The protesters are paid directly from the West, so it is their job to protest, adds Mamuka Pipia.
The fact that the West is involved in the protests is obvious, Giorgi Lomiya, leader of the Alliance of Patriots of Georgia, told Izvestia.
- We too do not recognize the legitimization of the parliament, we too say that the elections are rigged, but we are not joining the protest so that the alliance does not associate with pro-Western parties," he said.
Nevertheless, the situation in the republic is heating up and can be seen as more serious than in 2020 during the previous elections. Back then, the president, the diplomatic corps and spiritual leaders were at least present at the opening of the parliamentary session, he recalled. It is possible that the situation could stabilize if, for example, a technical mission of the European Union recognizes the results of the vote. Head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell announced on November 18 about the EU's intention to send such a mission to Georgia. By the way, in early January 2025 presidential elections will be held in the country, which may also provoke a new wave of protests.
