▲ Georgian President-elect Mikhail Kavelashvili, second from right, poses for a selfie at the nation’s Parliament in Tbilisi.Photo Ap
Juan Pablo Duch
Correspondent
La Jornada Newspaper
Sunday, December 15, 2024, p. 19
Moscow. The ruling Georgian Dream party, which claims to have won the legislative elections held on October 26 in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, described as fraudulent by the opposition, yesterday appointed Mijail Kavelashvili, a former footballer, as president of that country in the South Caucasus. professional, 53 years old, considered a pro-government politician adept at far-right discourse.
Unique candidate, by boycotting the participation of the opposition political wing in the new procedure to appoint head of state with rather symbolic powers, since for the first time in Georgia the president was not elected by universal suffrage, but rather by a college of electors, formed by 150 members of Parliament and 150 delegates from the authorities and political organizations of the interior of the country.
Present 225 of the 300 members of the college of electors, dominated by Georgian Dream, Kavelashvili received 224 votes, which provoked the usual protest of those who do not fear police repression in front of the Parliament headquarters, on the central Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, as well as as in other Georgian cities.
Since November 28, when Prime Minister Irakli Kobajidze announced the decision to postpone until 2028 the negotiations for Georgia’s entry into the European Union, an aspiration incorporated in the Constitution and supported by between 70 and 80 percent of the population, according to surveys this year, protests are taking place every day in Georgia; The protesters begin at night and are dispersed by the police at dawn, often through excessive use of force.
Political tension this month
Kavelashvili, in principle, should take office on December 29, although the mandate of the outgoing president, Salomé Zurabishvili, expires on Monday. Born in France to Georgian parents, a former diplomat and a fervent supporter of European integration, Zurabishvili supports the opposition’s demands and refuses to leave office until the elections are repeated.
“Zuravishvili is still the president of Georgia (…), there is only one way out of this very serious political crisis: new and fair elections,” the opposition parties said in a joint statement on December 12, while she – when describing this Saturday of anti-constitutional parody Kavelashvili’s appointment, reiterated that he does not plan to go anywhere because This country needs institutions that enjoy legitimacy and authorities that are truly elected and represent the will of society..
But the ruling Georgian Dream has no intention of backing down. Premier Kobajidze, in statements to the Georgian press, maintained that Just in two weeks the inauguration of the new president will take place and Zurabishvili will have to leave office.
The head of the Georgian government expressed the conviction that The presidency of Kavelashvili, a patriot and mentally stable person, will contribute to strengthening the sovereignty of Georgia and reducing the polarization of society. In contrast, Kobajidze called Zurabishvili a tragic figure, who ended up serving outside forces trying to divide our society and weaken Georgia’s constitutional order.
And he warned the still president not to dare ask for the support of the army and the police, which would be considered a very serious crime.
