Georgian President Salome Zurabichvili claimed “if anyone truly wanted peace” in the country, the “only solution” was holding a rerun of the parliamentary elections held in the country in October.
Zurabichvili said the ongoing protests were held for “one thing only, to call new elections”, adding without “justice and fair elections, there is no peace, nor any political processes afterwards”.
She said Georgia needed a “legitimate institution, a part of the legitimate Government”, which she said was “actually elected” and reflected the “voice of this country, [and] this society”.
The President also mentioned upcoming presidential elections on December 14 calling it a “provocation or a parody”, claiming an event would be “completely devoid of legitimacy, unconstitutional, illegitimate”.
She said the developments were “provoking public reactions” as she said it was an “insult to everything, our past, traditions, culture”, and to treat Georgia's independent institutions in this way, even, first of all, the parliament and all other institutions.
Zurabichvili also mentioned ongoing public protests taking place in cities across the country, as well as in Tbilisi with protesters marching in the city protesting the Government’s decision and demanding release of citizens detained during previous days of rallies.
The President also condemned the planned event to light up Georgia’s main Christmas tree on December 14 in front of the Parliament building at 7pm, calling it a “clear provocation”, as the protests had been “continuously expressed” in from of the legislative body for two weeks, and claimed “ if any provocation takes place the responsibility will fall on the mayor”.
