Prepared by Messenger Staff
Nino Lomjaria: Even if Parties Are Banned, There Must Still Be a Plan
Nino Lomjaria, Executive Director of Georgia's European Orbit, says that the political process must continue under any circumstances, even if opposition parties are banned. According to her, the public should not feel that politicians are unprepared for possible early elections.
"Even if parties are banned, there must still be a plan," Lomjaria stated. "The political process cannot be dead at that time, and the public must not have the feeling that politicians are not preparing, even for snap elections called unexpectedly."
Lomjaria emphasized that such preparations do not need to be conducted in full public view. "It is not necessary for the concrete steps to be discussed publicly," she said. "If specific opposition parties do not stand together, someone else will. Other forces or interested persons will appear and fill that niche."
She urged political actors to be ready for all possible developments, including scenarios where multiple parties face restrictions. "Whether two, three, four, five, eight or however many parties are banned, every scenario must be worked out," Lomjaria explained. "There must be a plan for how the political process continues. It is not necessary for protest participants to be involved or for everything to be discussed in front of the public. The main thing is that the process is happening."
Lomjaria also connected political preparation with the ongoing protests and public sacrifices made over the past year. "When people are sacrificing themselves and protesting, the public needs to know the political process is continuing," she said. "Those with political ambitions must be preparing for future parliamentary elections that could be called unexpectedly. One of the main demands, along with freeing political prisoners, is early elections. When they are announced, politicians cannot say they were not ready."
Zourabichvili to Diplomats: "Silence Is Not Loyalty"
The fifth President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, has issued a strong rebuke to the country's diplomats on Georgian Diplomacy Day, accusing them of betraying their mission by remaining silent as Georgia's European course is being reversed.
"Diplomacy is not obedience - diplomacy is service to the country!" Zourabichvili wrote on social media. "What is the ambassador in Brussels doing now that our European path has been changed? You, Georgian diplomats, what are you doing to save this country?"
The president said true loyalty to the nation is shown not through silence or career caution, but through honesty. "True loyalty is not measured by career silence. It is measured by speaking the truth, even when that truth is heavy," she wrote.
Recalling the origins of Georgian Diplomacy Day, Zourabichvili noted that it commemorates Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani, who died in the Vatican on 3 November 1629. "He defended Georgia's independence and sought ties with Europe," she said, adding that he symbolised "loyalty to the nation's interests and professional dignity."
Zourabichvili argued that today's diplomats have lost sight of that purpose. "You have forgotten why you were granted the privilege of serving in the name of the country," she wrote. "By your inaction, you are stripping Georgians of the European future you enjoy through the comfort of your postings abroad."
"Diplomacy must be dignity," she concluded. "But today that dignity is absent in you."
