On 29 December, the mandate of President Salome Zurabišvili expires. She supports the popular protests that have been going on for three weeks against fraud in the elections won by the Georgian Dream, which has ‘frozen’ the European integration project. He is calling for new elections to be called by then, while Prime Minister Iraklij Kobakhidze is threatening to open criminal proceedings against him.
A long report by Article18, CSW, Open Doors and Middle East Concern raises the issue. The future for migrants is uncertain with abuse and violence potentially waiting for them should they return to Iran. In 2023, 20 per cent of asylum seekers in Georgia came from Iran, 90 per cent fleeing after converting to Christianity.
Prime Minister Iraklij Kobakhidze's declaration of the interruption of EU accession talks until 2028 has made the clash even harsher, while the Constitutional Court has confirmed the outcome of the disputed elections. The police are using water cannons and tear gas and have already arrested hundreds of people. Former prime minister Georgij Kvirikašvili, former president of the majority party, has also sided with the protesters.
In the separatist region of Georgia that has been under Moscow's control for 15 years, thousands of people rose up against the government's agreements with Russian oligarchs. Bžanija announced the step back ‘to preserve stability and constitutional order’. These are not unprecedented events for Sukhumi, which is nevertheless destined to remain firmly in the hands of the Kremlin.
The opposition continues its mobilisation every night, denouncing the vote manipulations that would have led to the new success of the pro-Russian Georgian Dream. Documents are being collected for an international enquiry, while the outgoing government remains in a wait-and-see position, pointing to divisions between the parties and not believing in their ability to truly involve the population in the protest.
How many hold the pro-Russian government responsible for fraud that overturned the exit-poll results are pouring into the streets of downtown Tbilisi amid rising tension. President Zurabišvili and leaders of the opposition (which appeared divided into four different parties) do not recognize the results, which give the Georgian Dream 53.92 percent of the vote in a divided country. The Kremlin cries "destabilization on behalf of the Europeans."
