President asks public to show world their view on ‘rigged vote’

Georgia’s pro-Western president has called on the international community to stand up for her people after a controversial election that she said was “completely false”.

Opposition frontbencher Salome Zourabichivili called on Georgians to take to the streets on Monday, telling the BBC’s Steve Rosenberg that it was a “critical moment”.

The ruling Georgian Dream Party and the election commission firmly insist that the results, which gave the government nearly 54% of the vote, were free and fair.

However, Zourabichvili called on Georgia’s partners to see what is happening, adding that the government’s victory “is not the will of the Georgian people” who want to keep Europe’s future their.

Zourabichvili made clear the protest would be “very peaceful” and added that she did not believe Georgian authorities wanted confrontation.

It’s not entirely clear what she and four opposition groups hope to achieve by bringing Georgians to the main avenue before parliament on Monday, but she said it’s up to her to decide what happens next. people and political parties.

“My call is to organize a protest but where do the people of Georgia stand? That’s what we’ll see tonight.”

“We probably won’t be able to achieve that today or tomorrow,” she said. “There are a number of things that could be done. There could be an international review of some elements of the election, there could be a call for new elections. I don’t know how long any time.”

The European Union, NATO and the US have called for a full investigation into the allegations by monitoring ballot fraud missions before and on Saturday’s vote.

The call for protests echoes weeks of protests that brought Rustaveli Avenue in central Tbilisi to a standstill for weeks earlier this year.

There were clashes with riot police, who responded with water cannons, tear gas and force, as Georgians tried to stop the government from passing a Russian-style “foreign agent” law targeting its vehicles. media and civil society groups with foreign funding.

Ultimately, the protests failed and the EU suspended Georgia’s bid to join the 27-nation union, accusing it of backsliding on democracy.

The government is clearly prepared for further protests. Last week, it was reported that the Interior Minister had purchased new water cannon trucks and other equipment for riot police, including lethal weapons, for use “when necessary”.

Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze told the BBC that alleged violations before and during the vote were limited to “just a few” polling stations. He said that “the general content of the election is in accordance with legal principles and democratic election principles.”

But President Zourabichvili said the scale of election fraud was unprecedented: “Everything that we have ever heard about in this country is used in a parallel way.”

She alleged that, before the election, families who depended on state funds saw their identity cards taken away.

At the time, she said, it was difficult to know why, but it later became clear that ID cards were being used for so-called round-robin voting in Georgia’s new electronic voting system — “when a person can vote 10, 15, 17 times with the same code”.

She also described the vote results as a “Russian special operation”, without accusing the Kremlin of direct interference. Instead, she accused the government of using a “very sophisticated” Russian-inspired propaganda strategy.

The government has vehemently denied any connection to Russia, pointing out that it is the only country in the region that does not have diplomatic relations with Moscow.

Russia fought a five-day war with its southern neighbor in 2008 and still holds 20% of Georgia’s territory.

The Kremlin has denied anything to do with the election and mocked Georgia’s pro-EU president, whose term ends in December.

Several international leaders congratulated Georgian Dream on winning a fourth term in a disputed election, including Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban.

Orban is scheduled to arrive in Tbilisi on Monday for a two-day visit, which has upset some of his European partners over the message they send to the Georgian government.

A German Foreign Ministry spokesman said the Hungarian leader could go where he wanted, although he was clearly not speaking on behalf of the EU.

Hungary currently holds the EU presidency, but foreign policy chief Josep Borrell emphasized that the country has “no authority in foreign policy”.

“Whatever Mr. Orban said during his visit to Georgia, he does not represent the European Union,” Borrell told Spanish radio.