TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Police and protesters brutally clashed in Georgia after the nation’s ruling occasion suspended negotiations to affix the European Union till 2028.
Police used water cannons, pepper spray and tear fuel late Thursday to disperse protesters who took to the streets following the announcement by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the ruling Georgian Dream occasion.
Georgian Dream claimed victory in final month’s parliamentary election that the opposition within the South Caucasus nation dismissed as fraudulent and that has been condemned by European officers. The election on Oct. 26 was broadly seen as a referendum on the nation’s aspirations to affix the European Union and the ruling occasion had indicated to voters that it might proceed to hunt membership of the bloc.
The inside ministry mentioned it detained 43 individuals throughout the protests.
President Salome Zourabichvili mentioned the federal government declared “war” by itself individuals and confronted riot police on the protest, asking them whether or not they served Russia or Georgia.
The Georgian president, who has a largely ceremonial function, beforehand mentioned the ruling occasion rigged the election with the assistance of Russia, which beforehand dominated Georgia from Moscow when it was a part of the Soviet Union.
She mentioned the choice to droop EU membership marked the “conclusion of the constitutional coup which has been unfolding for several weeks.”
The federal government’s announcement that it was suspending negotiations to affix the EU got here hours after the European Parliament adopted a decision that condemned final month’s vote as neither free nor honest, representing one more manifestation of the continued democratic backsliding “for which the ruling Georgian Dream party is fully responsible.”
European election observers mentioned October’s vote came about in a divisive ambiance marked by cases of bribery, double voting and bodily violence.
The EU granted Georgia candidate standing in December 2023 given that it meet the bloc’s suggestions, however put its accession on maintain and reduce monetary help earlier this yr after the passage of a “foreign influence” legislation broadly seen as a blow to democratic freedoms.
EU lawmakers urged a rerun of the parliamentary vote inside a yr underneath thorough worldwide supervision and by an impartial election administration. Additionally they referred to as on the EU to impose sanctions and restrict formal contacts with the Georgian authorities.
The Georgian prime minister fired again, denouncing what he described as a “cascade of insults” from the EU politicians and declaring that “the ill-wishers of our country have turned the European Parliament into a blunt weapon of blackmail against Georgia, which is a great disgrace for the European Union.”
“We will continue on our path toward the European Union; however, we will not allow anyone to keep us in a constant state of blackmail and manipulation, which is utterly disrespectful to our country and society,” Kobakhidze mentioned. “We must clearly show certain European politicians and bureaucrats, who are completely devoid of European values, that they must speak to Georgia with dignity, not through blackmail and insults.”
Kobakhidze additionally mentioned Georgia would reject any budgetary grants from the EU till the top of 2028.
Critics have accused Georgian Dream — established by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a shadowy billionaire who made his fortune in Russia — of turning into more and more authoritarian and tilted towards Moscow. The occasion not too long ago pushed by way of legal guidelines much like these utilized by the Kremlin to crack down on freedom of speech and LGBTQ+ rights.
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The EU suspended Georgia’s membership utility course of indefinitely in June, after parliament handed a legislation requiring organizations that obtain greater than 20% of their funding from overseas to register as “pursuing the interest of a foreign power,” much like a Russian legislation used to discredit organizations essential of the federal government.
