Tbilisi (GBC) - Georgia's President Salome Zourabichvili on Thursday criticised the Government’s handling of ongoing “peaceful protests” in capital Tbilisi and other regions against its decision last week to postpone the country’s European Union accession talks until 2028, questioning deployments of riot police.
“These are peaceful protests involving families and children”, she told the Georgian Public Broadcaster, citing her observations of the rallies as “unique in their lack of violence or vandalism”.
The official also said Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze “must resign” for “failed crisis management”, adding “a PM who cannot navigate through a crisis, seeks no political compromise, and resorts only to intimidation must be replaced”.
Zourabichvili said once the PM resigned, she would annonce an election rerun within two weeks.
The official, whose term expires this month with the new Presidential elections scheduled for December 14, highlighted the necessity for dialogue to “determine the framework” of the new parliamentary elections, claiming the approach represented “compromise, depolarisation, and stability, paving the way for a peaceful and democratic future for the nation”.
The President further expressed concerns over the use of fireworks and pyrotechnics by demonstrators against the law enforcement, acknowledging safety risks but asserting “this is not the real issue”.
She pointed instead to the presence of police forces in metro stations and residential areas, describing their actions as “intimidation against citizens”.
Zourabichvili further defended her decision to engage directly with protesters, dismissing criticism over her attendance at demonstrations.
“I stood with my people, I went to ask law enforcement why they were acting against citizens instead of protecting them”, she said.
Addressing claims by Kobakhidze that the protests had been “brought under control” following seizures of fireworks and other items from opposition party offices in Tbilisi this week, the President dismissed them as “propaganda”, arguing that citizens' peaceful demands should have been respected from the outset.
The President also reiterated her stance on the legitimacy of the Parliament after what she has described as “rigged” October elections, maintaining that an “illegitimate Parliament cannot elect a legitimate President” following the end of her term, and urging the public to “remain patient” for her forthcoming clarification on the issue.
The President also claimed she “firmly stood” by Georgia’s “future as a democratic, independent nation”, adding “I will not apologise to nor compromise on our sovereignty”, in reference to ruling party officials offering an apology to those in the Russian-occupied regions of the country, following the Government’s claims that the previous United National Movement Government had incited the 2008 Russia-Georgia war”.
