Politics Georgia's president refuses to hand over office
The internal political conflict in the South Caucasus republic of Georgia continues to intensify. President Salome Zurabishvili, who is allied with the anti-Russian and pro-European demonstrators, announced in a video message in Tbilisi this evening that she would not hand over her official duties until there was a legitimately elected government in the country. "I will remain your president," she emphasized. "An illegitimate parliament cannot elect a new president, so there will be no inauguration, and my mandate will be extended until a legitimate parliament is elected," she was quoted as saying by the Interpressnews agency.
30.11.2024, 21:42
SDA
A debate had recently flared up in Georgia about the legitimacy of parliamentary sessions since the new elections. Following the parliamentary elections at the end of October, which were overshadowed by allegations of falsification, only representatives of the former pro-Russian ruling party Georgian Dream have met in parliament so far, with the opposition not entering the building. According to a number of lawyers in Georgia, the parliament is not allowed to meet until the Constitutional Court has ruled on an election complaint by Zurabishvili.
Zurabishvili had also called Monday's first session unconstitutional. As president, she had to convene the first parliamentary session and no one could do this on her behalf. According to parliamentary speaker Shalva Papuashvili, Zurabishvili's term of office ends on December 16.
Presidential election in December?
According to a draft resolution passed by parliament this week, the presidential election is to take place on December 14 and the inauguration on December 29. For the first time, the president will not be elected directly by the people, but indirectly by members of parliament and regional representatives.
Zurabishvili and the pro-Western opposition do not recognize the official results of the parliamentary elections on 26 October. The electoral commission had declared the ruling Georgian Dream party the winner with around 54 percent of the vote. After the election, the opposition announced that it would not accept its seats. Since the election, people have been protesting against the result almost daily, particularly in Tbilisi.
President: "The country is in turmoil"
In a short interview with the British broadcaster Sky News on Sunday, Zurabishvili emphasized that people were protesting against "stolen elections, Soviet-style". "The country is in turmoil," she said. The nationwide demonstrations of tens of thousands of people were "certainly not a revolution", but peaceful protests.
More than 100 people were arrested in clashes with the police during the most recent demonstrations, which also took place in most of the country's cities. During rallies in Tbilisi, journalists from the ranks of the demonstrators were allowed to comment on the events in the country for the first time in a live radio broadcast on Saturday, as reported in an opposition blog.
The Interior Ministry warned the demonstrators against alleged further acts of violence and called on them to abide by the law. "There will be an appropriate legal response from the police to any violations."
