New constitution urgently needed

The Georgian media informs us that a draft of the new constitution should be prepared by the Parliament’s Constitutional Commission by September 2014. However, this is unlikely to happen.

The Current Georgian Constitution has been criticized much. The Georgian Dream coalition claims that it was completely designed for the ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili. The first constitution was adopted in Georgia under Eduard Shevardnadze in 1995. After the Rose Revolution in 2004, Mikheil Saakashvili increased presidential power. However, in 2010, when Saakashvili’s second presidential term was expiring, certain amendments were introduced in the the Constitution that increased the prime minister’s powers at the expense of the diminishment of president’s rights. The former leadership had planned that he himself would have become prime minister.

However, the United National Movement was defeated in 2012 parliamentary elections and Georgian Dream took office. Bidzina Ivanishvili, who founded the coalition, was selected for position of prime minister.

Current administration does not hide that certain changes are required in the state arrangement system. Some of them speak about a strong parliamentary republic. However, others suggest a presidential ruling mode. In any case, a balanced system is required. A constitutional commission was created in 2013. They should write a new constitution, rather than remaking the existing one. There are some delicate issues related to the constitution. The federalization of the country, for instance. Another problem the current majority is facing now is the lack of constitutional majority. It is failing to carry out changes to the constitution with the support of the United National Movement. Many analysts suggest that the adoption of the new constitution will face many difficulties and it is unlikely to be adopted soon.

The adoption of the new constitution will become possible only after 2016, when new parliamentary elections will be held.