Opposition parties say Giorgi Rurua is being discredited by ruling Georgian Dream party

By Natalia Kochiashvili

Tuesday, June 9

Opposition urges gov’t to ‘fully abide by’ election agreement, release TV co-founder Rurua. Photo: IPN

On May 15th President Salome Zurabishvili pardoned Ugulava and Okruashvili ‘to break the tension, not because they were political prisoners.’ Photo: 1tv.ge

Opposition parties have urged the government to fully comply with all components of the March 8th agreement. In a joint statement released on 8th of June, they wrote that opposition parties that are presented in the Parliament are ready to support the agreed constitutional changes, if all points of the agreement are met. According to them, the agreement could not be considered enforced as long as political prisoner Giorgi Rurua remains in prison.

The statement emphasises that the release of political prisoners Giorgi Ugulava and Irakli Okruashvili by the President of Georgia on May 15th was an important step in fulfilling the terms of the agreement. “At the same time, we believe that fulfilling all the components of the March 8th agreement and making constitutional changes is fundamentally important to prevent a possible political crisis in the country,” the joint announcement reads.

“We are particularly concerned about the ongoing targeted campaign of Giorgi Rurua against the background of the legal fiasco, which has been launched by the government-run media in recent days.”

In the letter, they express particular concern over recent ‘targeted government campaign against Giorgi Rurua’ during the ongoing ‘judicial fiasco,’ aiming to his discreditation through the media outlets managed by the government.

The opposition claims that this is another attempt to politicise the trial and justice system, which directly contradicts the spirit of the March 8th agreement and threatens the political consensus based on the agreement.

The statement is signed by the following parties: Girchi, United National Movement, European Georgia, National Democratic Party, Akhali Sakartvelo, Republic Party, Lelo, Labor Party, State for the People United Georgia, Victorious Georgia, European Democrats, Christian-Conservative Party, Civil Alliance for Freedom, Free Democrats.

The statement was issued by the press center of the United National Movement.

The Georgian Dream and the opposition parties reached an agreement on constitutional amendments on March 8th with the active participation of facilitator diplomats. In 2020, 120 deputies will be elected by a proportional system and 30 deputies by majoritarian, the election barrier will be 1% that ensured by the so called ‘locker,’ so that a party with less than 40% of the vote cannot form a parliamentary majority.

The opposition says the second part of the agreement calls for the release of political prisoners, the existence of which was denied by the authorities, thus arguing that their release was not a matter of agreement. After the president pardoned Irakli Okruashvili and Gigi Ugulava, the opposition demanded the release of Giorgi Rurua. The current co-founder of the opposition-minded TV channel Mtavari Arkhi was detained on November 18, 2019 for alleged possession and carrying of a firearm, a charge Rurua dismisses.