Georgia’s president calls for new elections as protests erupt again

Georgia’s pro-Western president has said she will stay in office until new parliamentary elections are held, as protests continue over the government’s decision to halt EU accession negotiations.

Speaking to the BBC, Salome Zourabichvili, who has sided with the opposition, claimed the current Parliament is “illegitimate” following allegations of fraud in last month’s election.

Zourabichvili said she will retain her role as president, although the country’s newly elected parliament said it would elect her replacement on December 14.

Mass protests in the capital continued to erupt for the third night in a row on Saturday in the capital Tbilisi.

Riot police have been deployed around the country’s parliament, the focal point of the ongoing protests, with officers using tear gas and water cannons.

Protests are also taking place in the cities of Batumi, Kutaisi, Zugdidi and other regions of Georgia.

“I offer this stability for the transition, because what these people on the street are asking for is a call for new elections to recover this country and its European path,” said Zourabichvili.

Hundreds of officials have signed letters expressing their disapproval of the government’s decision to halt negotiations with the EU, saying it goes against Georgia’s national interests.

Georgia’s ambassadors to Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Italy have also resigned.

Since 2012, Georgia has been ruled by Georgian Dream, a party that critics say has sought to push the country away from the EU and closer to Russia.

The party claimed victory in last month’s election, but opposition MPs are boycotting the new parliament, alleging fraud.

On Thursday, the European Parliament supported resolutionwho described the election as the latest stage in Georgia’s “worsening democratic crisis” and said the ruling party was “fully responsible”.

He expressed particular concern about reports of voter intimidation, vote buying and manipulation, and harassment of observers.

After the resolution, the prime minister of Georgia said that his government had “decided not to put the issue of accession to the European Union on the agenda until the end of 2028”.

In response, thousands of pro-EU protesters began demonstrating in front of the Georgian Dream offices in the cities of Tbilisi and Kutaisi on Thursday.

A group of public figures, writers and journalists have also demonstrated in front of the country’s public broadcaster in the capital Tbilisi, accusing it of being a mouthpiece for the country’s ruling party.

“The public broadcaster must be freed from Russian influence and regime pressure,” said writer and activist Lasha Bugadze.

“The public broadcaster covers all of Georgia and they’re brainwashing our population with propaganda, people who may not be sure what’s going on,” he said.

Four opposition coalitions and parties that won seats in last month’s parliamentary elections but refused to take office citing widespread vote rigging have issued a joint statement calling for new elections under international supervision.

“Parties with a legitimate mandate from the people of Georgia will stand up to the illegitimate regime of the Georgian dream and systemic violence against peaceful protesters and journalists,” the statement said.

The United States has condemned the “excessive use of force” in Georgia and called on all parties to keep the protests peaceful.

“The Georgian people overwhelmingly support integration with Europe,” a State Department statement said.

About 150 people were arrested after the November 29 protests in the capital, Tbilisi. Police used water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters.

In the early hours of 30 November, the police crackdown intensified as they began to chase down the protesters, with reports of protesters being kicked and clubbed.

The country’s prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, said 50 police officers were injured at the hands of “violent protesters who threw Molotov cocktails, pyrotechnics, glass and stones at the police.”

Kobakhidze has also criticized European politicians for “hurling a cascade of insults” at the Georgian government.