GEORGIA: Otsneba’s Candidates & more – 12th Sep 2024

Gamarjobat from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Georgia Update from the 12th of September twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Georgia.

On Tuesday, the 10th, the ruling party, The Georgian Dream or Otsneba unveiled the first twenty candidates on their electoral list.

At the top is Bidzina Ivanishvili, making a comeback... for the third time. Ivanishvili has been actively involved in party events recently and has even introduced bulletproof glass to local politics, which has further fueled speculation about his paranoia.

Two new and well-known figures have joined the list. Number six is Lasha Talakhadze, a world-renowned weightlifter. It’s no surprise since Talakhadze has been an active supporter of Otsneba for years. It remains to be seen if he will be able to raise the the party’s rating, probably the heaviest weight he ever attempted.

Much more unexpected is Number ten, Geno Petriashvili, an acclaimed wrestler who recently won Olympic gold. His addition to the list of the pro-Russian party has surprised many, especially after he was kidnapped and held in the Russia-occupied Tskhinvali region when he was a kid.

The Russian law remains a hot topic in the news. The deadline for voluntary registration has already passed; however, this year's most controversial legislation has taken an unexpected turn. On Monday, the 9th, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced plans to create a government fund for NGOs that choose to register.

Kobakhidze argues that donors are pressuring some NGOs to avoid registration by threatening to withdraw funding. He says that if these organizations are transparent and genuinely serve their country, they should register and benefit from government funding. However, critics suggest that the ruling party’s move aims to create government-friendly NGOs to boost the legitimacy of the upcoming October elections. The first government grants are expected to be available in January twenty twenty-five.

More about NGOs as on Saturday, the 7th the Dedaena Park hosted the presentation of a new election monitoring mission that unites thirty NGOs. The name of the campaign is MY VOTE FOR EU — because the elections can be seen as a referendum for people to decide whether they want a pro-west government or a pro-Russian government. Nino Lomjaria, the Former Public Defender of Georgia, stated that the purpose of the mission is first to oversee free and fair elections at all polling stations, and second, to provide training to every willing citizen who wishes to register as an observer. The plan is to cover polling stations both within Georgia and abroad.

To register as an observer, follow the link in the show notes! .

Speaking of the EU, last week, members of the German Bundestag visited Georgia and held meetings with representatives of civil society and the opposition. In their joint statement, members of Germany’s Foreign Relations Committee said that the current direction Otsneba is taking, with its authoritative tendencies and undemocratic actions, is not compatible with the European Union. If this situation does not change, Germany will not support the start of the EU accession negotiations with Georgia.

Prime Minister Kobakhidze and the Chairman of Parliament Shalva Papuashvili refused to meet with the Bundestag representatives. Particularly odd was Kobakhidze’s reasoning for his refusal. He recalled Michael Roth, another Bundestag member who visited Tbilisi during the Russian law protests and accused him of fostering a revolution. However, Roth was not part of the current delegation.

At this point, the only support Otsneba seems to be receiving from the international arena is from Russia. Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, has previously praised Otsneba for adopting the Russian law, which has led to the destruction of civil society in Russia. This week, he also gave an approving nod to the Georgian Parliament for passing an anti-LGBT law through its second hearing. Lavrov mentioned that Georgia and Russia share a common Motherland – the Soviet Union and he is happy that Georgians guard their traditions, history and national identity, for which they’ve earned criticism from the West.

Let’s move on to the politicians that the northern neighbor has failed to woo. In a recent interview with Le Figaro, Salome Zourabishvili, Georgia’s President, discussed her future in politics. Even though she had previously been silent on the matter, in response to a direct question from the interviewer, Zourabishvili stated that she is ready to continue her responsibilities in a second term.

Due to changes in the Constitution, the next President will be appointed by whoever wins the October elections and forms the government. So if Otsneba ends its twelve-year run, she can be appointed as President by an opposition coalition. In that case, her priorities would include canceling recent laws that directly contravene Georgia’s constitutional goal of joining the European Union.

On that note about interviews, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen recently spoke with National Journal about the political situation in Georgia. As expected, the main points concerned the worsening relationship between the U.S. and Georgia, the Russian law, and the upcoming elections.

Shaheen stated that during a meeting with Kobakhidze, the PM asked the U.S. to stop funding any Georgian organizations that might be critical of the ruling party. Kobakhidze responded to this statement by calling it a pure fabrication and a lie.

On Tuesday, the 10th, a solidarity protest was held in support of Afgan Sadiqov, an Azerbaijani journalist who was detained in Tbilisi in August. Protesters demanded the Georgian government not to grant an extradition request by Azerbaijan, where he is officially wanted on charges of extortion and threats. His family members, local journalists, and NGOs who attended the protest, say that the charges are fabricated and the he is being punished for criticizing the authoritative regime of Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan’s president.

Protests were also held on Wednesday, the 11th, when participants of several month-long protests in Chiatura arrived in Tbilisi. They say that the mining works near Shuqruti are destroying their houses. So far their protests have gone unnoticed by the government. They arrived in the capital, hoping that their voices will be heard louder in Tbilisi, in front of parliament, where they spent the night. Protesters attempted to set up tents but the police stopped them.

In business news, another Russian giant has entered the Georgian market. This time, it’s the e-commerce platform Ozone.ru, which is essentially Russia’s version of Amazon. The company has been expanding its operations into post-Soviet states since twenty twenty-one. The arrival of Ozone.ru, alongside Yandex, which has already been operating in Georgia for years, marks Russia’s ever-growing economic interest in the country.

Moving on, it was a significant week for Georgian culture. Dea Kulumbegashvili's film April was awarded the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. It is the first Georgian movie in thirty years to be featured in the main competition at the Venice festival. The film follows the story of Nina, a gynecologist, who faces accusations after a newborn’s death.

You can check out a review by Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian with the link in the show notes!

And to close this edition, some sports news. Last week saw two separate occasions when football fans came out to the street to celebrate the national team's success. On Saturday, the 7th, Georgia won in an opening League of Nations match against the Czech Republic, scoring four goals to one. Then, on Tuesday, the 10th, the team won again, this time against Albania, on the opponent’s home field.

And that's it for this week!

Thanks for tuning into the Rorhsok Georgia update. You can connect with us on social media as @RorshokGeorgia on Twitter and @rorshok_georgia on Instagram.

Nakhvamdis!