Ruling party MP: Georgia needs “peaceful development, European integration”, not war
Irakli Zarkua, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday highlighted the need for “peaceful development” and European integration for the country. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
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Irakli Zarkua, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday highlighted the need for “peaceful development” and European integration for the country.
Zarkua was speaking after public protests last week led to the ruling Georgian Dream party shelving a proposed bill that involved registration of non-commercial legal entities and media outlets in the country as “agents of foreign influence” if they derive more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad.
Echoing comments by ruling party politicians in the wake of the protests, the MP claimed a connection between the demonstrations and a part of the domestic opposition he said was aiming to effect a “coup” and “open a second front” of the war in Ukraine in Georgia.
He also stressed Georgia’s European future was “not in danger”, and said the ruling party had failed to explain “to the citizens and young people in advance what we are dealing with”, in reference to reasons for the controversial proposal.
Our country is so important - we have such a great country, including its geographical location - that from south, north, west, east, all countries have interest in this country”, Zarkua said.
The ruling party on Thursday announced it was “unconditionally” withdrawing the bill, which had been proposed by the People's Power movement and met with a backlash by domestic opposition, civil sector and diplomatic representations in the country, as well as public rallies outside the legislative body.
Georgian Parliament on Friday formally retracted the draft law on transparency of foreign influence, following the decision by the ruling Georgian Dream party to withdraw the bill.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Thursday called on domestic opposition “to refrain from speculations”, stressing a “political decision” made by the party to withdraw the bill on transparency of foreign influence from the Parliament, could not be revised “under any circumstances”.
Mikheil Sarjveladze, the Chair of the Georgian Parliament's Committee on Human Rights, on Monday said “under no circumstances could Georgia allow itself to open a second front” of the ongoing war in Ukraine in the country.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Sunday said his Government "would not allow" the country's involvement in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict through opening the "second front" for Russia until in office.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said the Government of the ruling Georgian Dream party was the “guarantor” against the scenario of the “second front” of the war in Ukraine being opened in Georgia.
Kakha Kaladze, the Mayor of Tbilisi and the Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Friday said the former United National Movement Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili and UNM Chair Levan Khabeishvili had a “desire” to cause a change in the domestic political scene through “staging a confrontation, a revolution, a coup”.
Mamuka Mdinaradze, the Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday said the call by the European People's Party, the largest party in Europe, for the creation of a European equivalent to the United States Foreign Agents Registration Act, was an “evidence” of a “hoax of the century” in Georgia, in reference to public protests against a similar bill that led to its withdrawal by the ruling party on March 9.