Georgian parties sign document aimed to resolve domestic political crisis
TBILISI. April 20 (Interfax) - The leaders of the ruling party Georgian Dream and five opposition parties signed a document on Monday evening drafted by the EU and the United States and aimed to resolve the domestic political crisis in Georgia.
The document envisages the end of parliament boycott by opposition parties and the parliament's declaration of amnesty for everyone involved in the Tbilisi unrest of June 20, 2019, when hundreds of opposition members tried to storm the parliament building. Besides, head of the opposition United National Movement Nikanor Melia and co-owner of the opposition Pirveli TV Giorgi Rurua will be released from custody, the electoral system will be adjusted, and the judiciary reform will be made more profound.
Unless the ruling party Georgian Dream wins at least 43% of the vote in the local elections due in October 2021, early parliamentary elections will be held in 2022, the document said.
Salome Samadashvili, a co-leader of Georgia's biggest opposition party United National Movement, signed the document and said she did so personally, considering that the party was still at consultations.
"I personally sign this document because it meets the interests of Georgia," Samadashvili said.
This is a step forward for Georgia, as well as a step on Georgia's path towards the Euro-Atlantic integration, U.S. Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan said.
The founder and informal leader of the United National Movement, former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili told the press on Monday that opposition parties could not sign the document due to "the lack of any alternative to early parliamentary elections."
The document has been signed, but the final stance of Saakashvili's party remains unclear. The party leaders told reporters earlier on Monday they would not sign the document but, instead, would prepare for holding a "grandiose" protest against the authorities in Tbilisi on May 15. The stance of the opposition party European Georgia is not clear either: the party is continuing internal consultations. Former European Georgia Chairman David Bakradze signed the document personally.
The political crisis broke out in Georgia after the parliamentary elections of October 2020, whose results were rejected by five opposition parties despite winning parliament seats. They said the elections were rigged by the authorities in favor of the ruling party Georgian Dream.
European Council President Charles Michel, who co-authored the document aimed to resolve the political crisis in Georgia, watched the signing ceremony via a video linkup.
He congratulated Georgian politicians on signing the document and expressed hope that Georgia would continue to pursue the path of democratization and rapprochement with the European Union.