Parliament speaker slams MEPs for backing unrest in Georgia, calls it "betrayal"

Georgia has fully witnessed lies, attempts to impose obedience, calls for unrest, and betrayal disguised as love for its people — all in the name of Europe, according to Shalva Papuashvili, Head of the Georgian Parliament.

He shared his thoughts on social media in response to the recent visit of parliamentarians from eight EU countries, Caliber.Az reports via Georgian media.

His remarks followed a protest rally in Tbilisi, where representatives of the European Parliament met with critics of the Georgian government, including President Salome Zurabishvili, opposition members, and NGO representatives.

On November 11, the vice speakers and heads of the foreign affairs committees from EU parliaments arrived in Tbilisi to show their support for the protestors, who have accused the Georgian authorities of electoral fraud. They addressed the rally later that evening.

In his social media post, Papuashvili commented, "At the election event in Kutaisi, I said how war is passed off as peace, standing on one leg as freedom, lies as truth, and 'Judas' kiss' as love for the Georgian people."

He went on to say, "Yesterday, we saw in full measure both lies, desire to obey, calls for riots, and especially abundant were the ‘kisses of Judas’ passed off as love for Georgians. And all this in the name of Europe."

Kakha Kaladze, the Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party and Mayor of Tbilisi, also criticized the actions of some European MPs during the rally.

At the rally against the results of the October 26 parliamentary elections, members of the European Parliament from Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland, France, Sweden, and Estonia took to the stage. Several lawmakers, including Michael Roth, Chairman of the Bundestag's Foreign Affairs Committee, voiced their support for the protestors and urged them to continue their fight for Georgia’s integration into the European Union.

Kaladze expressed his disagreement, stating, "They (EU MPs) are people without a homeland. We have such people inside the country as well, for whom Georgia is just a territory. However, we have a majority of people in our country for whom Georgia is a homeland, where they were born, grew up, love this country and made a relevant decision in the elections."

He further condemned the MPs' actions, calling it "enmity, not friendship," and stated, "What we saw yesterday is categorically unacceptable. This is not friendship, but enmity. This is a direct call for confrontation, and division of people within the country. This is what we have been hearing for the last few years. We see specific sources of funding. This is a threat to the country. We must call everything by its names."

Kaladze also pointed out that if similar actions occurred in any European country, the MPs would have been expelled.

Georgia held parliamentary elections on October 26, with the ruling "Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia" party securing 53.93% of the vote, granting it the mandate to form a government independently, according to the Central Election Commission.

Four opposition parties passed the five per cent threshold: "Coalition for Change" with 11%, "United National Movement" with 10.16%, "Strong Georgia" with 8.8%, and "Gakharia for Georgia" with 7.76%. Despite their success, all opposition parties that entered Parliament have rejected the election results, labelling them as fraudulent. Incumbent President Salome Zourabichvili has also condemned the outcome, refusing to acknowledge the election results.

By Tamilla Hasanova