Georgian dream faces challenges amid deepening crisis
The protests on the streets of Tbilisi, which periodically escalate into violent clashes between protesters and security forces, show no signs of abating.
At the same time, both sides of the conflict – the authorities and the opposition – are increasing the stakes. The leadership of the ruling Georgian Dream party claims that it will not allow the “Ukrainization” of Georgia and a “colour revolution,” which it suspects is being orchestrated by certain external forces and “specially trained groups.”
In turn, a highly pro West, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, who claims the role of informal leader of the opposition, accuses the security forces of repression and Georgian Dream of seizing power.
With each passing day, the Georgian authorities and the opposition are escalating tensions and issuing increasingly harsh statements.
On Tuesday, the General Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party and Tbilisi Mayor, Kakha Kaladze, drew parallels between the events in Tbilisi and the Ukrainian Maidans.
Meanwhile, Georgian President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief Salome Zourabichvili, who actively supports the opposition and, along with them, did not accept the official results of the October 26 parliamentary elections, told French journalists that the Georgian police were “carrying out repressions in the country.”
Meanwhile, people in Georgia are trying to answer the question: was the Prime Minister’s controversial decision to postpone negotiations with the EU a provocation or a mistake?
The founder of the Republican Party of Georgia, David Berdzenishvili, said that there might be a third option – an “emotionally pre-emptive” reaction to the European Parliament’s resolution on non-recognition of the results of the October 26 elections and the need to impose sanctions on the country’s leadership.
According to the politician, the authorities “certainly did not expect such a violent reaction” from their fellow citizens – the leaders of Georgian Dream believed that since the parliament had gathered for its first session despite the opposition’s resistance, this step would be accepted in Georgia without any particular unrest. “But Georgian Dream clearly miscalculated,” Berdzenishvili concludes.
The Constitutional Court’s decision on the request to invalidate the October elections due to numerous violations could have been an opportunity to prevent further escalation of the conflict.
However, the court, by a majority vote of seven to two, did not even entertain the petition filed by President Zourabichvili and 30 opposition deputies.So who is Right ? A few handfuls cannot reject the WILL of the majority who have elected and given majority to Georgian Dream Party.
The Constitutional Court of Georgia to has given its verdict in favour of the Dream Party. Will the military be the final judge?
