Georgia president calls for new elections as protests erupt again

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

Speaking to the BBC, Salome Zourabichvili, who has sided with the opposition, described the current parliament as “illegitimate” after allegations of fraud in last month’s elections.

Zourabichvili said she would retain her role as president, despite the country’s newly elected parliament saying it would choose her replacement on 14 December.

Mass protests in the capital are continuing to erupt for a third consecutive night on Saturday in the capital Tbilisi.

Riot police have been deployed around the country’s parliament, the focal point of three nights of protests.

Officers again used tear gas and water cannon against protesters into the early hours of Sunday, as they tried to push people away from the parliament building.

Demonstrations were also taking place in the cities of Batumi, Kutaisi, Zugdidi, and other Georgian regions.

“I’m offering this stability for the transition, because what these people on the streets are demanding is a call for new elections in order to restore this country and its European path,” said Zourabichvili.

Hundreds of civil servants have signed letters expressing their disapproval of the government’s decision to put negotiations with the EU on hold, saying it went against the national interests of Georgia.

Georgian ambassadors to Bulgaria, Netherlands and Italy have also resigned.

The US said on Saturday that it was suspending its strategic partnership with Georgia, citing the government’s “various anti-democratic actions”.

Since 2012, Georgia has been governed by Georgian Dream, a party which critics say has tried to move 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 backed a resolution, describing the election as the latest stage in Georgia’s “worsening democratic crisis” and saying that the ruling party was “fully responsible”.

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

Following the resolution, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said his government had “decided not to bring up the issue of joining the European Union on the agenda until the end of 2028”.

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

A group of public figures, writers and journalists have also been protesting outside 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 the influence of the Russians and the pressure of the regime,” said writer and activist Lasha Bugadze.

“The public broadcaster covers the whole of Georgia and they are brainwashing our population with propaganda, people who may not be sure what is going on,” he said.

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

“Parties with a legitimate mandate of the Georgian people will confront the illegitimate regime of Georgian Dream and the systemic violence against peaceful demonstrators and journalists,” read the statement.

In a statement, the US condemned the “excessive use of force” in Georgia and called on all sides to ensure the protests remain peaceful.

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

Some 150 people were detained following the 29 November protests in the capital Tbilisi. Police used water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters.

At dawn on 30 November the police crackdown intensified as they began chasing the demonstrators, with reports of protesters being kicked and beaten with batons.

The prime minister said that 50 police officers were injured at the hands of “violent protesters who threw Molotov cocktails, pyrotechnics, glass, stones at the police”.

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