“European parliamentarians believe that the elections in Georgia were neither free nor fair, and were another manifestation of the continuing retreat from democracy”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
According to the press service of the EU legislative body, 444 deputies supported the document, 72 were “against” and 82 “abstained”.
European parliamentarians believe that the elections in Georgia were neither free nor fair, and became another manifestation of the continued retreat from democracy in the country, “for which the ruling party “Georgian Dream” bears full responsibility.”
MEPs condemn numerous and serious violations during the elections, including documented cases of voter intimidation, manipulation of votes, interference in the work of observers and media, and believe that the voting results announced by the country’s Central Election Commission “are not a reliable reflection of the will of the Georgian people.” .
European deputies call for the EU and its member states to apply personal sanctions against officials and political leaders of Georgia who are responsible for retreating from democracy, violating election legislation and standards, in particular against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, the Mayor of Tbilisi and the Secretary General “Georgian Dream” by Kakh Kaladze, Speaker of the Georgian Parliament Shalva Papuashvili and former Prime Minister and oligarchs Bidzina Ivanishvili.
MEPs also call on the EU to strictly limit official contacts at the EU level with the Georgian government and parliament, clearly stating that Georgia, as a result of recently approved anti-democratic legislation, including the “law on transparency and foreign influence”, has already effectively suspended the process of EU integration.
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On October 26, parliamentary elections were held in Georgia, in which “Georgian Dream”, according to official data, won 53.9% of the vote and received 89 out of 150 seats in the legislative body.
The remaining seats were distributed among the opposition parties: “Coalition for Changes” (19 seats), “Unity – National Movement” (16 seats), “Strong Georgia” (14 seats) and “Gakharia – for Georgia” (12 seat).
There were protests in Georgia.
On November 25, only deputies from “Georgian Dream” participated in the parliament session, the legitimacy of which is not recognized by the opposition and the president. They recognized the powers of all 150 deputies, re-elected Shalva Papuashvili as the speaker of the parliament, and elected committee heads.