The Oppositon is Sabotaging EU Membership? & more – 26th Oct 2023

Gamarjobat from Gracia! This is the Rorshok Georgia Update from the 26th of October twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Georgia.

On Tuesday, the 24th, Khatuna Samnidze, Allegedly an Opposition MP and Chairperson of the Republican Party, accused some members of the opposition -but she refused to give names- of hindering the process of Georgia getting EU candidate status. Samnidze said that these opposition members have recently intensified their efforts against Georgia's EU candidacy, by asking EU officials to delay the membership process. This is all preparation for Georgia not getting Candidate status and Georgian Dream or Otsneba blaming it on the opposition.

Next up, the Case against President Zourabichvili.

On Tuesday the 24th, Irakli Shotadze, General Prosecutor, said there’s an investigation on the President. However, the Constitution gives her political immunity, so she can only be prosecuted through impeachment or for constitutional violation. Notably, in September twenty nineteen, the General Prosecutor's Office started investigating a potential abuse of power during the Presidential pardoning process involving convicts like Ramaz Devadze, Aslan Bezhanidze, and Zurab Nadiradze. Members of the opposition who recently talked with Zourabichvli said that such accusations did not scare the president. According to the opposition, the impeachment, the investigations of the president, were all carried out to hinder the process of getting EU candidate status. But they said however, Zourabichvili is determined to continue pushing for Georgia’s candidacy.

On Monday the 23rd, Nika Melia, the former Chair of the United National Movement, or Natsebi, did not join the party’s council meeting because he thought former Defense Minister David Kezerashvili was influencing Natsebi. In a recent social media post, Melia said that even though Kezerashvili is funding the party, he criticized their "outdated views" and "reputational problems," asserting that the party would not succeed with their informal involvement and influence in the party purchased by financing it. He also criticized the party's leadership for seeking advice from Kezerashvili, stating that true unity requires loyal individuals. Melia lost the party's chairmanship to Levan Khabeishvili amid internal controversies earlier this year, where he referred to Khabeishvili as a "puppet." Rumors were that the loss was organized by Vano Merabishvili who is in Georgia and Kezerishvili who lives in the UK and has a bunch of money. Levan Khabeishvili said that Melia's comment was in line with Russian and Otsneba's propaganda, which tries to throw a shadow on Georgia's largest opposition party.

On Thursday, the 19th, NGO the Social Justice Center, said that occupying forces in Abkhazia's Gali have kept ethnic Georgian resident Irakli Bebua detained in horrible conditions. The Center said that his health is deteriorating and needs immediate medical attention. Prison conditions are worsening his already fragile health. Incomplete medical exams due to a lack of infrastructure in jail has hindered proper treatment.

Heading west, Security Agency forces of the occupied region detained Bebua in Abkhazia in September twenty twenty after he set fire to a decorative banner in Abkhaz flag colors, protesting against the Victory and Independence Day celebration in the ethnic Georgian district of Gali. In December twenty twenty, the Abkhazian court sentenced him to nine years in jail. Otsneba members said that the Georgian government is doing everything it can to free Bebua from prison.

And south west, On Monday the 25th, according to the information of the government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, its twenty twenty-four budget increased by 100 million laris, around thirty-seven million US dollars, and exceeded 700 million laris, about 260 million US dollars. Totnike Rizhvadze, the head of the Adjara government, said that the ministries' budget, the financing of infrastructure and social programs, and the amount of money transfers to municipalities have increased.

Back to Kartli, on Tuesday, the 24th, Gori authorities announced the opening of a new kindergarten building near the occupation line close to the village of Mejvris-khevi, in Gori municipality. According to Gori City Hall, they have built a two-story building that meets all modern standards. Mejvris-khevi Kindergarten has six groups, and they have enrolled 100 children. This year, Gori municipality opened the fourth new kindergarten building. City Hall said they plan to open another kindergarten building in another village within the current academic year.

On Monday the 23rd, at the second meeting in Tehran, foreign ministers of the 3+3 Platform expressed openness to Georgia's participation. Established in twenty twenty-one, the Platform includes Iran, Turkey, Russia, and South Caucasus countries, Azerbaijan and Armenia. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Georgia might be included in the Platform in the near future. Iran also expressed hope for Georgia's active participation. However, Georgia has refused to be part of the Platform since its first meeting in Moscow in twenty twenty-one. The Georgian government said it could not attend a meeting hosted by the Russian Federation – a country that does not recognize Georgia's territorial integrity. On Tuesday the 24th, Shalva Papuashvili, Parliament Speaker, with a very serious face, ruled out Georgia's participation in any kind of meeting that involves a country occupying Georgia's territories.

On Wednesday, the 25th, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili visited Brussels and participated in the Global Gateway Forum. During a panel session on transport corridors, Garibashvili emphasized a very insightful and original point about the strategic location of Georgia at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, which he referred to as one of the country's greatest assets. He mentioned various infrastructure projects, such as the Black Sea submarine electricity cable project, which will create transit opportunities and back-to-back trade options for green, renewable energy between the EU and the South Caucasus via Georgia. Furthermore, Garibashvili highlighted the construction of a deep sea port in the Black Sea town of Anaklia, to boost Georgia's capacity to transport large amounts of cargo. He didn’t mention how Otsneba and Bidzina had sabotaged the project by prosecuting the guys financing it, Mamuka Kharzaradze while investing in Poti during the sabotage.

On Tuesday the 24th, the National Tourism Administration said that In the January-September twenty twenty-three period, over 5.5 million international visitors went to Georgia, recording a rise of 43% compared to twenty twenty-two and a 77% recovery of the pre-pandemic levels. Regarding tourism, a total of 3.6 million foreign tourists visited the country in January-September twenty twenty-three, up 35% from twenty twenty-two and a 92% recovery from the twenty nineteen period. Foreign visitors can comprise people who just crossed the border from neighboring countries and continued their journey to a third country. Tourists, on the other hand, officially declare their aim to visit the country and usually have hotel bookings. They didn’t disaggregate Russians from those numbers, because that would have been a bit of a buzz kill.

On Tuesday the 24th, Baia Salukvadze, founder of a local hazelnut manufacturer and exporter called GPR Nuts, stated that the low quality of nuts has made this year exceptionally difficult for hazelnut growers. She said they are actively looking for new markets that can accommodate the quality of their harvest so that they do not have to decrease sales. However, they struggle because countries don't want low-quality products. The company is exploring new markets in Africa and Asia. GPR Nuts processes around 2,500 tons of nut kernels annually and exports them to various countries worldwide. Considering the first eight months of twenty twenty-three, Italy is still the largest buyer of Georgian nuts, followed by Germany and Spain.

On Friday the 20th, RadioLiberty published an article on destroying heritage sites in Georgia. The country has 8,000 cultural heritage sites, 1,000 of which are national. Among these is the tenth-century Korogho Tower, which was recently demolished and awaits restoration, sparking outrage from historians, conservators, and art critics. The public discovered the destruction by chance because of a picture taken by British photographer Peter Nasmyth. Project managers said it's part of a reconstruction process, but the Cultural Heritage Agency and Ministry of Culture haven't provided an explanation yet. The incident highlights the need for better preservation and accountability for Georgia's rich cultural heritage.

Wanna know more? Link in the show notes!

And that's it for this week!

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Nakhvamdis!