UNM opposition leader Vashadze calls for negotiations with ruling party
UNM leader Grigol Vashadze has urged opposition parties to hold negotiations with the ruling party with the mediation of strategic partners. Photo: G. Vashadze’s press office.
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The leader of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Grigol Vashadze has called on other opposition parties to sit at a table with the ruling Georgian Dream party to resolve election-related complications.
Vashadze’s statement, which was released by the New Post agency, was ‘unexpected and confusing’ for opposition parties, including the UNM.
Other members of the UNM said that ‘the statement is Vashadze’s personal opinion which was not agreed upon with us.’
- PM on opposition rally: gov’t, strategic partners taking initiative to resolve problems at the table
The opposition parties who took to the streets following the October 31 parliamentary elections say that the elections were fabricated.
They are demanding repeat elections, dismissal of the head of Georgia’s Central Election Commission and recomposition of the commission.
In the statement Vashadze says that opposition’s accusations are right. However, he says that the current political situation is taking the country to chaos and destabilisation.
Georgia is in a very dangerous situation. We face four major and severe challenges: economic, social, political and demographic. The pandemic was added to the challenges. Military-political situation in the region is very complicated. Instead of national consolidation, the political situation in Georgia has become very tense, pushing us to chaos and destabilisation,” Vashadze said.
He stated that if the Georgian political spectrum fails to realise the challenges and rejects the advice of NGOs and international partners on holding negotiations, ‘we will lose the chance of further democratic development of Georgia.’
Vashadze stated that the opposition should bring the recount process of disputed election districts to the end with the involvement of strategic partners, as well as the discussion of election complaints.
The steps will allow us to end the political crisis by the rightful winning of the opposition and gaining majority in parliament,” Vashadze said, adding that the CEC chair Tamar Zhvania ‘must resign’ and the new parliament must create a special commission to look into the election violations and ensure the creation of ‘fair electoral environment that will exclude fabrications.’
Vashadze said that state interests should stand above private, political goals.
The European Georgia opposition party leaders called the statement 'unexpected and confusing' and appealed to Vashadze to further explain his words.
Eight opposition parties refused to take up their mandates in parliament and took to the street. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
UNM member Khatia Dekanoidze stated that ‘it is regrettable that the party leader made the statement without the agreement of the party members.’
Fellow member of the party Nanuka Zhorzholiani said that ‘if Vashadze really wrote the statement, he must quit the post of the party leader.’
Later Vashadze published ‘explanations,’ where he said that rallies should continue but ‘a political component should be added to the protest.’
He said that negotiations, with the mediation of strategic partners, should take place to ensure fairness for the elections.
Vashadze said that if the negotiations will not bring results, the opposition parties must not participate in the second round of elections and must not take up their mandates in parliament.
He stated that ‘everyone must take steps’ a normal political process not to be replaced by rallies ‘due to the fabrication of elections in the future.’
Opposition parties that claim the October 31 parliamentary elections were fabricated will continue rallies on Saturday, November 14, at 15:00, in central Tbilisi.
The Central Election Commission has published an announcement where it responds to opposition’s rally held yesterday in front of the CEC building, calling it the pressure on the Election Administration, noting readiness to discuss any topic related to the elections peacefully with the involvement of various parties.
In a joint statement Transparency International Georgia (TI), the Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA) and the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) say that although Georgia’s parliamentary elections were a clear setback for the country and the worst elections held under the Georgian Dream government, they believe that there is still a chance to find a way out of the political impasse through dialogue.
Police have used tear gas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators who marched from central Rustaveli Avenue to the building of the Central Election Commission (CEC) after ruling Georgian Dream party leaders rejected opposition demands to dismiss CEC chair Tamar Zhvania and hold repeat elections.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Archil Talakvadze says that the acceptance of October 31 election results is the precondition for holding negotiations with the opposition.
The State Inspector's service of Georgia has started an investigation into alleged excessive use of force against a detainee at the opposition’s rally held yesterday.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has again called on opposition politicians to move the political processes from ‘destructive’ street protests to negotiations with the involvement of international partners.
Opposition activities are rallying at various district election commissions in Tbilisi and in the regions, where commission members are making summaries of the results after a recount of votes in several constituencies.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has responded to the opposition’s election-related protests and said that all political parties in Georgia ‘must understand’ that the people have given them the mandate to take care of the country in the current period ‘which is full of challenges’ due to the pandemic. Gakharia, who has just recovered from coronavirus, stated earlier today that the fate of the county must be decided in parliament, not on the street.
The High Council of Justice of Georgia has stated earlier today that opposition politicians are ‘lying and trying to mislead people’ when they say that the court rejected 99 per cent of the opposition’s election-related suits.
Members of all nine political parties which entered parliament following the October 31 parliamentary elections have held a first meeting with the mediation of the diplomatic corps earlier today to address the current political crisis in the country. The meeting has been held at the US Embassy in Tbilisi and was attended by US, EU and French ambassadors.
Georgian opposition parties plan to hold rallies on central Tbilisi streets without speeches by opposition leaders during the visit of the US State Secretary Mike Pompeo on November 17-18.
The head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Grigol Vashadze has stated that he has left the party and said that the presence of ‘odious figures’ in the party and attacks on the diplomatic corps and ‘other controversies’ pushed him to resign. Vashadze said in his Facebook post released earlier today that he has done his best as the head of the party since January 2017 to make the party stronger.