The twists and turns of Independence

Over the past 24 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgia has changed its leaders several times, and all of them introduced certain changes in celebrating Georgia’s independence. The reasons for the modifications varied. For instance, in 2013 the Georgian government refused to arrange a military parade to mark the date, as it did not want then President Mikheil Saakashvili to receive the military parade.

Today, the president is Giorgi Margvelashvili, who was endorsed by Bidzina Ivanishvili himself. However, due to unknown reasons, the relationship between President Margvelashvili and PM Irakli Gharibashvili have become tense. Thus, for the second year in a row, there was no military parade to mark the annual event. According to the constitution, which was adopted by Saakashvili’s presidency, the president’s powers have been significantly reduced. Because Saakashvili was preparing the Prime Minister’s post for himself, many of the prior responsibilities of the president were delegated to the Prime Minister.

This is the current situation. During the this year’s Independence Day celebration, Prime Minister Gharibashvili participated in almost all the events dedicated to the date. Whereas, the president attended the military oath of 200 conscripts.

Instead of organizing a military parade in major cities of the country, Georgia exhibited its military wares to the public. This caused spurred some controversial comments, the essence was as such: “We are a defeated country, we need not celebrate and demonstrate our armed forces.”

Some believe that Georgia does not have an army strong enough to protect the country. They say that Georgia only protects the interests of other countries.

Overall, the intonation of the leaders of the country was optimistic. PM Gharibashvili stated with pride that it was a special day, as one month from now the country will sign the EU Association Agreement. President Margvelashvili highlighted that independence is a major possession of any country. Parliamentary Chair Davit Usupashvili stated that May 26 becomes more and more significant for the Georgian people. However, he mentioned that the deeper we go in our independence, our problems also increase. He also stressed that Georgia has many challenges that eventually will increase our sense of resistance. Indeed, Georgia faces many challenges and it’s up to us to make wise decisions. Georgia has chosen the European way. Though, this might force the country to face even more challenges. People in Georgia should unite, as success lies in unity.