Opposition may boycott elections, leave parliament as ruling party backs out of EU-mediated agreement
Opposition parties say that the ruling party has betrayed European values. Photo:Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
Tweet 
Share
The Lelo opposition party has stated that they may boycott the October 2 municipal elections, while several opposition leaders have urged opposition MPs to give up their mandates as the ruling Georgian Dream party has left the April 19 EU-mediated agreement.
The opposition parties say that the ruling party ‘acted in an absolutely irresponsible and a destructive manner’ and ‘said no to the EU and the US’ through pulling out of the agreement which had resolved a six-month political crisis in the country and proposed large-scale reforms.
The GD has pulled out of the Michel Agreement. They've betrayed our Western partners, the Georgian people, peace ans stability. I invite the opposition to hold consultations on the way forward, that could include boycotting the local elections. pic.twitter.com/HCOx90B9UO
— Mamuka Khazaradze (@M_Khazaradze) July 28, 2021
The ruling party once again confirmed that their word has no price,” head of European Georgia opposition party Giga Bokeria said.
He and other opposition politicians stated that the ruling party knows ‘it will not take 43 per cent of votes in the municipal elections’ and that is why the party left the agreement.
According to the EU-mediated agreement if the ruling party failed to receive at least 43 per cent of votes in the municipal elections, repeat parliamentary elections would take place in the country.
The head of the ruling party Irakli Kobakhidze stated earlier today that the holding of repeat parliamentary elections will now be dependent on the ‘goodwill of the Georgian Dream.’
Kobakhidze stated it is the opposition's fault the EU-mediated agreement has not been fulfiled. Photo: GD press office.
We will accept the conduct of repeat parliamentary elections even if we receive 53 per cent of total votes in the municipal elections, instead of 43 per cent if the actions of opposition political parties will show that the political system in the country is ready for effective coalition governance,” Kobakhidze said.
Kobakhidze stated that the ruling party was the only party which was fulfilling the EU-mediated agreement, while other opposition parties either refused to join the agreement or ‘were consistently violating’ it.
Kobakhidze said that holding municipal elections under the EU-mediated agreement while opposition parties refused to sign it ‘would be harmful for Georgia’s interests and would affect the rating of the ruling party.’
The ruling Georgian Dream party has annulled its signatory status to the April 19 EU-mediated agreement which resolved a six-month political crisis in the country following the 2020 parliamentary elections and proposed large-scale electoral and judiciary reforms.Head of the ruling Georgian Dream party Irakli Kobakhidze stated earlier today that the agreement initiated by the European Council President Charles Michel ‘had completed its mission’ and accused opposition parties of non-fulfilment of the agreement.
President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Rik Daems has urged Georgian political parties to practically implement the April 19 EU-mediated agreement which includes large-scale reforms including in the electoral and judiciary fields.
Opposition United National Movement (UNM) members will take up their parliamentary mandates after almost a six-month boycott, party chair Nika Melia has announced after the party’s political council meeting today.
The US Department of State has urged the remaining opposition parties and individual MPs to sign the EU-mediated agreement to resolve the political tension in Georgia which began after the October 2020 parliamentary elections.
Leader of opposition party Girchi - More Freedom Zurab Japaridze has left parliament after the ruling Georgian Dream party’s withdrawal from the EU-mediated agreement early today, stating that the agreement was his reason for being in parliament. Japaridze claimed the ruling party decided to leave the agreement because it has ‘zero chance of receiving 43% of the vote in upcoming elections’ – a condition provided for in the EU-mediated agreement, which if not met would see repeat parliamentary elections in Georgia.
Georgian civil society organisations say the recent decision of the ruling Georgian Dream party to back out of the April 19 EU-mediated agreement ‘constitutes a straightforward rejection of Georgia's Euro-Atlantic course and the peaceful development of the country through democratic reforms’.
Opposition parties are undecided what to do after the ruling Georgian Dream party left the EU-mediated agreement yesterday - a document signed by the majority of Georgian political parties back in April 2021 which resolved a six-month political crisis.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said earlier today that the implementation of reforms will continue despite the ruling Georgian Dream party’s withdrawal from the EU-mediated agreement which ended the six-month political crisis caused by the parliamentary elections of 2020. The April 19 agreement obliged all signatory parties to participate in the process of fundamental electoral and judicial reforms’ implementation.
The US Embassy in Georgia has responded to the ruling party’s exit from the EU-mediated agreement and stated that ‘Washington is growing increasingly alarmed about repeated setbacks to Georgia’s democratic future.’ The ruling Georgian Dream party announced yesterday that the agreement initiated by the European Council President Charles Michel ‘completed its mission’ and left the agreement.
European Council President Charles Michel has called on all political parties in Georgia today ‘to put the interests of citizens first’ following the ruling party’s exit from the EU-mediated agreement. The ruling Georgian Dream party has left the April 19 agreement brokered by Charles Michel, noting that it had ‘completed its mission.’